Shadows of the past
by Stand with Ward and Queen
Summary: Alt. version of Ghosts of the past. first chapter is the same, but will be a different story. AN inside explains everything.
1. The Salvatore sister

**So, this is an alternate version of** _ **Ghosts of the past**_ **. I realized that I didn't do a lot of the things I wanted to do when I first started writing the story and I sort of rushed the Triangle to its conclusion due to the lack of Delena in the first half of season six. This story will have no bearing on** _ **Sins of the past**_ **, as the triangle may not end the same way. While the first, and possibly the second, chapter will remain the mostly the same, the rest of the story will be different.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Whitmore College, Elena's dorm room,

September 6th

9:15 P.M.

"…I want you to compel me to forget that I ever I loved him." Elena Gilbert told the stunned Alaric Saltzman.

Confused anyone? Well then, allow me to explain. The girl with the wavy dark hair who looks like she just cried her eyes out, yeah that Elena Gilbert. The last Petrova Doppelganger (long story, don't ask) and a Vampire. The guy next to her is her Step-father, Alaric Saltzman, an Original Vampire, meaning he is the first in a line of Vampires, should he ever turn anyone.

Four months ago, Elena's boyfriend, Damon Salvatore, died along with Elena's best friend, Bonnie Bennett. Elena has made her peace with Bonnie's death; it is Damon's that she is having a hard time grieving. She apparently loves Damon so deeply, that she literally _cannot_ seem to move past it. She even had a Warlock mix up some Witchy drug that allows her to hallucinate Damon. Crazy, I know, but people do crazy things for love. It's kind of romantic if you think about. Crazy as hell people but still romantic.

Anyway, Elena is asking Alaric, who has the ability to compel, which is a form of mind control that Vampires possess, her to forget Damon so she can move on with her life. Sorry Elena, no, not on my watch.

"I know you're all depressed and everything, but don't you think erasing the memories of loving Damon is kind of insulting to his memory?"

Elena and Alaric jump before standing up and turning towards the door. Standing there leaning against the doorway was who looked like a sixteen year old girl, but Elena and Alaric had seen enough that they knew not to judge a book by its cover. She had Caucasian skin, long curly pale blonde hair and a piercing pair of bright blue eyes. That and the fact that was dressed in dark clothes with a black leather jacket made Elena and Alaric feel a strange sense of déjà vu. Elena was the first to realize why with a deep sadness: she was almost a female Damon. And it wasn't because of the clothes, well not completely. It was the same pair of eyes she had been dreaming about for years; they were _exactly_ the same eyes that Damon had.

That's right everyone, that's me.

"Three questions," Alaric began with a protective step so he shielded Elena from this girls gaze, "One, who are you, two, what do you want, and three, how do you know about Damon?"

"And why do you have Damon's eyes?" Elena asked as she peeked her head out from behind Alaric's shoulder.

"Well, question two is a bit of a long story, but I can answer your other two questions along with Elena's with the same answer: I'm Damon's sister." The girl told them.

Alaric and Elena froze as the girl closed the door and walked over to them. She held out her hand politely but Alaric and Elena, partly out of shock and partly out of skepticism, just stared at it. As if she understood, she dropped her hand, not at all looking offended or insulted.

"I'm Luna, Luna Salvatore." Luna introduced herself.

"No offense Luna, but how do we know you're who you say you are?" Alaric asked wary.

"None taken, I'd be worried if you just took my word for it," Luna assured him before turning to look at Elena, "shortly after you turned, you began your relationship with my brother, not knowing that you were sired to him. My other brother, Stefan, and your best friend Caroline, used this information to make Damon doubt your feelings for him. While he was at your family's lake house, training your brother to be a hunter, you called him every day, but he never answered. One night, he did and you told that, Sire Bond or not, it was the most real thing you ever felt…that you loved him."

"H-How do you know that?" Elena asked shakily overwhelmed by the emotions of the memory.

"Because he called me afterwards and told me….he told me was happy for the first time in years." Luna said as she smiled at Elena as Alaric and Elena relaxed.

"I'm sorry for my rudeness." Alaric apologized slightly ashamed at his treatment of his best friend's sister.

"Like I said, don't worry about it." Luna told him with grin/smirk that reminded them largely of Damon causing a pang to go through their hearts.

"So your Damon's sister huh?" Alaric asked as he searched her face and noticed that she shared many facial features with the late Salvatore.

"Well, half-sister really. Tell me, what do you about Giuseppe Salvatore?" Luna asked curiously.

"Not much, just what Stefan told us plus Damon told me the story of how he and Stefan became Vampires." Elena told her as Alaric nodded.

"Well then forget everything except that story you two," She told them to their confusion, "Stefan had a good relationship with him, and his guilt over killing him makes him ignore all the bad things that his father did, but Giuseppe was a monster. He used to beat Damon for as far back as I can remember until Damon left for the civil war; he was a first rate Bastard. About a year after Stefan was born, our mother grey tired of his coldness and found love with another man, ironically a friend of her husband. A year later I was born, the result of her affair. Five years later, as she lay on her death bed, she told Damon the truth."

"Ho-how did you find out the truth?" Elena asked quietly.

"I was away at boarding school when the news broke that my brothers and the man I believed to be my father were dead. I was devastated and continued to be until I saw Damon a year later in Paris. He explained what had happened to him and Stefan before he finally came clean about my true heritage." Luna explained.

"And Giuseppe never figured it out?" Alaric asked her surprised.

"Damon thought he may have suspected but Damon wasn't willing to investigate in case he was wrong and he ended up exposing me." Luna explained.

"So, not to be rude Luna, but what are you doing here?" Elena asked her.

Well, it's a long story, but I have a plan that I think you two are gonna want to help me with." Luna told the two other Vampires.

"And why do you think that?" Alaric asked not aggressively but curiously.

"Because the end result is the only thing that Elena really wants and something you want desperately as well." Luna told the Enhanced Original.

"And what is that?" Elena asked curiously, with a hint of fear as broken heart dared to hope.

"Because the end result is my brother, back in the land of the living." Luna told them.

 **So, what do you guys think? Please review, please!**


	2. While you were gone

**I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, Or anything else you may recognize.**

The other side, moments before its destruction

"Do you think it'll hurt?" Bonnie asked Damon as they stood side by side holding hands as they waited for the other side to collapse.

"I don't kn-" Damon began to answer before they were both consumed by a bright, white light.

They both expected to blink out of existence, but that wasn't what happened. When they light faded, they both realized they were still alive, well still here anyway. Dropping hands, they began to feel themselves just to make sure they weren't hallucinating. Realizing they weren't, both realized they were no longer standing in the woods outside the Salvatore crypt, but on a road at night. Seeing a sign not far from them, they walked over to it and Bonnie heard Damon suck in a breath behind her. She turned to him and was shocked to see him more unnerved than she had ever seen him, like he had seen a ghost. Confused, she turned back to the sign.

"'Welcome to Tree Hill,'" Bonnie read off before turning to Damon with a raised eyebrow, "Have you ever been here before?"

"…in my one hundred and forty eight years as a Vampire, this was the place where I was happiest. It's also the place where I lost everything." Damon told her in an ominous tone.

Outside Mystic Falls, September 7th

8:54 A.M.

Caroline, Matt, Jeremy, and Tyler all sat on a bench in a park outside of the Anti-magic border of their home town. Elena had called them early this morning, telling them that she had a lead on Damon and Bonnie and to meet here. The four of them stood up as they spotted her with Alaric and a blonde haired girl that none of them recognize.

"So who's your friend guys?" Caroline asks once they reach them.

"I'm Luna Salvatore, Damon and Stefan's sister." Luna introduced as she held her hand out to Caroline who took it with a shock expression which was mirrored on Tyler and Matt's faces while Jeremy's was indifferent.

"Stefan never mentioned you." Caroline said stunned as the two blondes dropped hands.

"Not surprising, he's always been a crappy brother to me," Luna said and almost snorted at the stunned look on the baby Vamp's face, "don't let his 'I am holier than thou' attitude fool you. He turned his back on me when I was only five; he's not a good brother Caroline, Damon is."

"You know my name?" Caroline was surprised by Luna's giggle at that.

"Damon and I talk all the time." Luna said as way of explanation.

"You said you had a lead on Damon and Bonnie?" Jeremy asked impatiently.

"It's not my lead exactly; I'm taking you to the one with the lead." Luna said as she gestured for them all to follow her.

"Um, will Stefan be there?" Caroline asked what they were all thinking.

"He should be I sent someone to collect him." Luna said with a growing smirk.

"And why should we believe anything you say?" Tyler asked her retreating form.

"Because right now, I'm the best chance you have at getting Damon and Bonnie back." Luna said logically.

With Stefan

9:07 A.M.

Stefan groaned as he came to, wondering where he was before it all came back to him. Enzo had shown up at his house and snapped his neck…Ivy! Stefan whipped his head up around to see Enzo at the driver's seat in the car they were in, smiling cheerfully as he hummed along to the lyrics of the song that was playing on the radio.

"Welcome back Stefan." Enzo said cheerfully.

"Where the hell is Ivy?" Stefan snarled as he began to run through all the things Enzo could have done to her.

"Ivy? Ah yes, your girl, relax she's fine. As far as she knows, you and I are old friends who have decided to go on a, what do they call it today? Ah yes, a 'bros weekend.'" Enzo said casually.

"What do you want Enzo?" Stefan snapped.

"It's not what I want, it's what your sister wants," Enzo said as Stefan blinked in shock, "I ran into her a few days ago, charming girl. She has a lead on Damon, an actual lead. That's where we're headed now, to up with her and the rest of your rag-tag team of Supernatural creatures. So, you ready to save your brother?"

"It's a real lead, not another dead-end?" Stefan asked as the hope that he had given up began to flare in his heart.

"Yes, it is. We have a way to bring him back Stefan." Enzo said in a surprising gentle tone.

"Then I'll do whatever it takes." Stefan said as determination began to fill him.

With Damon and Bonnie

Four months ago

Damon and Bonnie walked under the night sky into town and noticed that it seemed to be deserted, even for night. Damon looked around the town he had once called home with a sense of nostalgic wistfulness as Bonnie trailed behind him. Suddenly, Damon walked over to a building at a speed that Bonnie had to run to keep up with. Once Damon had stopped in front of it, Bonnie caught up with him and realized it was a music studio called 'Red Bedroom Records.' On the front door was an advertisement with a photograph that had a picture that Damon seemed to be transfixed by: it was of a young woman with curly blond hair and bright green eyes.

"Did you know her Damon?" Bonnie asked unable to help herself.

"I saw my own misery in her eyes," Damon said in a faraway voice as if to himself, "but I didn't care, because I was in love."

"What?" Bonnie asked not understanding.

"Have you ever experienced a love so strong that nothing can come between it," Damon asked her without looking away from the picture, "like the two of you were two halves of the same soul?"

"…I think I have." Bonnie said after a moment of consideration.

"If you have to think about it, then you haven't seen or felt it," Damon disagreed as he finally looked away from the picture and towards Bonnie, "this kind of love I have felt only twice: once with Elena and once with her."

"What was her name?" Bonnie asked as she took another look at the photo.

"Her name was Peyton Sawyer, She was my wife." Damon told her before turning away and walking off.

A house between Mystic Falls and Whitmore College

9:35 A.M.

As everyone was getting out of their own vehicle, a black Volvo pulled up to the house. Everyone looked on in shock as Enzo and Stefan got out and walked over to them. The only one who seemed unsurprised was Luna, who gave her brother a chilly smile.

"Well well, if it isn't the black sheep of the family." Luna said in a sarcastic drawl that reminded everyone of Damon.

"I thought Damon was the black sheep." Jeremy blurted out before he could stop himself.

"That is what Stefan likes to think, but the truth is that it's the other way around. Stefan here seems to be a family man when it comes to the human branch of the Salvatores, but he has a different set of rules for the Vampire branch." Luna said icily.

"Luna, you hate me," Stefan said factually, "I understand and I probably deserve it, but can we put aside our issues until we get Damon back?"

"For Damon." Luna nodded before leading the others into the house.

Once they entered, everyone looked around, astounded at the amazing house. Luna walked towards a hallway and looked over at them with an apologetic smile.

"Everyone but Stefan and Alaric, there is a living room downstairs where you can read or watch TV," Luna held up her hand to stop the protests, "I know you all want answers, but I figured it could save us some time if I just take the ones who are needed right now. The faster I get this done, the faster Damon and Bonnie will get here."

Ignoring the grumbling of their friends, Stefan and Alaric followed Luna down the hall. They followed her into a kitchen where a woman in her mid-thirties was at the counter mixing something into a bowl that looked absolutely disgusting. The woman with long brown hair and brown eyes looked over at them and smiled with a smile that was infectious.

"You must be Stefan and Alaric, I'm Brooke Davis." Brooke said as they walked over to her.

"Um, not to be rude, but what are you mixing?" Alaric as he stared at the bowl grossed out.

"This is the ingredients to the spell that will get your best friend back." Brooke told him smugly as he gaped openly at her.

"You're a Witch." Stefan realized.

"Not just a Witch, She's the Witch Queen. She is the closest thing that the Witches have to royalty." Luna told her brother civilly.

"Damon's an old friend and I will do whatever it takes to get him back." Brooke said as she walked to the kitchen table.

"So what do you need from us?" Stefan asked her politely.

"The spell I'm going to cast is a portal to where Damon and you're friend Bonnie, are, a prison dimension. The spell only works on Blood relatives of someone who is imprisoned there and the last ingredient I need is the blood of an Original." Brooke explained as she set the bowl on the table and turned to face the Vampires.

"I'm sorry, prison dimension?" Stefan asked not liking the sound of it.

"It's a place created by a Witch to hold someone dangerous," Luna explained, "basically, it's a world where you repeat the same day over and over and no time passes."

"Sounds like hell." Alaric said as he imagined it.

"It is, now are you ready?" Brooke asked.

With Damon and Bonnie

Four months ago

"What is this place?" Bonnie Damon as they walked inside a house.

"This is where I lived when I lived here fifteen years ago." Damon said solemnly as he closed the door behind them.

"Nice place." Bonnie said as she spotted a picture of Damon and Bonnie on their wedding day and her heart warmed on how happy Damon looked.

"Home sweet home." Damon smiled hollowly as he walked into the place he had vowed to never return.

Brooke's house

9:45 A.M.

"Okay, here's the spell to come back," Brooke said as she handed it to Luna who folded it and placed in her jacket, "you guys ready to start?"

At the nod from the two Salvatores, Brooke started the spell and the bowl of ingredients caught fire. A huge, blue portal opened up between where Alaric and Brooke were standing and where the Salvatores were standing. Neither Salvatore reached to the opening of the portal except to look at each other in silent determination.

"Are you ready for this?" Luna asked in icy civility.

"I'm ready to do whatever it takes to save our brother." Stefan told her and the iciness faded from her eyes and she offered him a slight smile.

The two joined hands before jumping through the portal. It was like jumping through a black hole, like spinning around in a tornado, you had no control over what happened. The brother and sister pair landed on a road, groaning as they stood up. Their surroundings were unfamiliar to Stefan, but not to Luna.

"No way." Luna breathed causing Stefan to look at her curiously.

"You know where we are?" Stefan asked curiously as they stood up.

"I know more than that, I used to live here," Luna said as she looked around fondly, "this is Tree Hill, North Carolina. Damon and I lived here fifteen years ago…I forget how happy we were."

"So do you have any idea where he is?" Stefan asked as took a look around the small town.

"If he's back here, there's only one place he would go, no matter how painful." Luna said before blurring off with Stefan blurring after her.

They blurred halfway across town before stopping in front of a large house with a painted red door. Luna hopped over the gate and Stefan followed her by opening the gate. They sprinted up the pathway and steps before Luna opened the unlocked door. The two of them walked through the door and Stefan closed the door behind him, looking around the house when his eyes stopped on a picture of Damon in a tux next to a woman in a wedding dress. Luna saw her brother staring at it and decided to relieve him of his confusion.

"That's Peyton, she was his wife." She explained in a quiet voice.

"Was?" Stefan repeated.

"She was killed a few months after the wedding." Luna told him in a sad voice.

Before the conversation could continue, they heard some coming and looked up just in time to see Damon and Bonnie enter the room. At first there was stunned silence as the two pairs stared at each other before Luna launched herself at Damon and the two siblings shared a tight embrace. Stefan was beginning to feel awkward when Damon reached across and practically dragged him into a hug. The three Salvatores shared their first group hug since they were children for several minutes before Bonnie cleared her throat loudly.

"Sorry to interrupt this family reunion, but how did you get here?" Bonnie asked curiously as the Salvatores separated from each other.

"My friend Brooke Davis, a very powerful Witch, sent us here with a spell," Luna explained as she pulled out a piece of folded paper, "this is the spell to send us all home."

Before Bonnie could react, the door burst open and Luna stuffed the paper back in her jacket as they all turned around to face the door. A group of men and woman came in before they were followed by their presumed was a Caucasian man a little older than Bonnie, with a shaved head and brown eyes who smiled maliciously. Damon and Luna tensed as they both glared at the man with hate.

"Julian." They said in union as if his name was a curse.

"Damon, Luna, it's been a while," Julian said casually, "this must be your brother Stefan and I have no idea who your friend is and I don't really care."

"So you guys want to introduce us?" Bonnie said as she glared at the man already.

"Everyone has an arch-nemesis and this is mine. Stef, Bonnie, meet Julian Baker, the most Psychotic Witch you'll ever meet." Damon growled.

"I'm not here to fight Damon; simply here to make a deal for you see Damon, I have something you want." Julian said before clapping his hands.

Another Warlock then entered the room, but it was his struggling captive that had their attention. For, looking like she hadn't aged a day was-

"Peyton?" Damon gasped as he stared at his wife who he thought had died years ago.

"Julian nodded at his Warlock who brought in who then released her. Peyton ran forward and Damon met her in the middle and the two shared a passionate embrace as Damon looked down at his wife, memorizing every detail as she took his head in her hands.

"Peyton I don't…how?" Damon wasn't even able to get the worlds out.

"I didn't kill her that day Damon, I sent here, to relive the same day for fifteen years and never age," Julian interrupted the reunion with a smirk, "but that's not even the best part. Tell him Peyton, tell him the best part."

"What's he talking about?" Damon asked as he looked down at her.

"I…know it's impossible. But Damon…I'm pregnant and it's your baby." Peyton told him nervously.

Damon was too stunned to think for a moment. Peyton, pregnant with his kid? It was impossible, but the look in Peyton's eye made him believe her. And there was a feeling in the farthest corner of his heart, a feeling of joy. He had always wanted a child as a human, and now it looked like he could have that.

"And you will do exactly as I say or I will kill her and your little miracle baby." Julian said smugly.

"Back off Julian." Luna went to attach but Damon threw his arm out in front of her.

"There's too many to take on without Peyton and the baby getting hurt," Damon said in a low voice, "you have the spell to get home. Go, tell the others, and beat him. Save us, all of us."

"I knew you'd see things my way." Julian said as Damon escorted Peyton back over to him.

"Damon." Stefan called out horrified as Julian's army began chanter.

"Get us Back Stefan, save us because that is what you do." Damon said before there were covered in light and when it faded only Stefan, Luna, and Bonnie were left in the room.

 **So, what do you think? Please leave any thoughts or comments in a review or PM me.**


	3. The bad brother

**I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Brooke's house, September 7th,

10:11 A.M.

The house was rocked by a powerful tremor that seemed originate from the Kitchen. Elena, Enzo, Caroline, Jeremy, Matt, and Tyler all got up and ran up the stair and towards the kitchen as fast or humanly, or Vampirely, possible. Once they reached the kitchen, they saw Stefan and Luna helping a very familiar dark skinned girl to her feet as Brooke and Alaric stood by stunned and dismayed at something.

"Bonnie!" Caroline shouted gleefully as she launched herself at the dark skinned girl and wrapped her in a bone crushing hug.

"Car...Air." Bonnie gasped for breath.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so happy to see you!" Caroline beamed as she released her Witched friend before frowning as she noticed the absence of her friend's smile she had expected.

"Bonnie…where's Damon?" Elena asked lowly as she noticed her love's absence.

"That's…complicated." Bonnie said as she thought of how to break the story.

"Define complicated." Enzo ordered in a dark voice.

"It's a story so complicated that I can barely believe it myself…and I was there for most of it." Luna said as she ran a hand through her blond hair.

"What we have to say is probably going to be hard to believe, so why don't we sit down while we tell it?" Stefan suggested.

Unspecified location

10:23 A.M.

Julian opened the doors to the room and Led Damon and Peyton inside. It was more a loft than a room, Damon noticed as he looked around while never lowering his guard and keeping arm around Peyton. There were several book shelves, a couch by a huge Flat screen TV, a computer desk, and a single bed. There room was the size of the Boarding house driveway and there was a room, probably a bathroom, not far from the bed. Over all, it looks like a hotel suit that the president might have stayed in.

"Well, here is where you'll be staying while we shall we say work together," Julian says as he turns to them with a dark smile, "I hope it lives up to your expectations."

"What do you want Julian?" Damon askes bluntly and only grows angrier by the smirk on Julian's face, "what do you want from me?"

"What I want is to see you suffer. What I want is to tear everything and everyone you care about away from you until you beg me for death," Julian saws as he takes a threatening step towards them and Damon's grip on his wife tightens, "but for now, I'll settle for making you hate yourself more than you already do. You will do everything I tell you to do or your pretty wife here with die. Do we understand each other?"

Brooke's house

10:29 A.M.

"So, let me see if I have this right," Brooke said as she runs her forehead wanting a glass of scotch, "Peyton is still alive, has been in Julian's prison dimension all this time, and is carrying her and Damon's half human/half Vampire miracle baby, for which Julian is black mailing Damon with?"

"Basically, yes." Luna said looking like she could join her friend for a drink.

"So…does someone want to fill us in on who the hell Peyton and Julian are?" Alaric as everyone tried to absorb what they had just heard.

"Almost sixteen years ago, Damon met Peyton on a bridge during the night," Luna began to explain as everyone began paying close attention to her even Stefan who was hearing this for the first time; "at first he was just gonna feed on her but…there was something different about her. I think she reminded him of himself, someone who was lost and alone, they were both broken like that. Instead of feeding on her, he compelled her to forget what had happened and left her. He didn't expect to see her again, but fate seemed to have other ideas because they ran into each other at a café the next day."

"They were dating by the end of the week," Brooke said with a sad smile as she became lost in her memories, "she was my best friend and I had never seen her as happy as she was with him. Not six months later, we all attended their wedding. Damon even wrote a book about her."

"He did?" was the general opinion.

"Have any of you ever heard of _The Comet_?" Brooke asked them.

"I have," Stefan remembered, "but I never read it based on the reviews.

"It didn't get much success, but Damon and Peyton loved it because it symbolized their relationship perfectly. "The boy saw the comet and suddenly his life had meaning."" Brooke recited fondly.

"It's an epic love story." Luna said smiling.

"A love so strong that nothing can come between it," Bonnie said softly as everyone looked at her, "that's what Damon called it in the prison world."

"So we've established that Peyton is Damon's not-so-dead wife," Enzo said growing impatient, "now who in blazes is Julian?"

"My brother's very powerful, and crazy, Witchy Arch-Nemesis." Luna explained with a scowl.

"He was a film producer who has always had a thing for Peyton," Brooke explained as they turned their attention to her, "but Peyton never paid him any attention, never paid anyone any attention until Damon. When they first got together, he went ballistic. That's when we realized that he was a Witch and he vowed to tear away everything that Damon loved until Damon would beg him for death."

"Wait, one thing still doesn't make sense: why wait four months until Julian makes his move. Why not do this when Damon and Bonnie first arrived in the prison world?" Tyler pointed out.

"He wanted to make sure we knew what was happening," Luna answered grimly, "this is all a game to him: a game to make Damon suffer. I know you all have your issues with my brother, but Peyton has always seen the good underneath that he tries to hide. Julian is going to make Damon do terrible things until she can only see the bad in him."

Caroline's apartment

10:45 A.M.

"Caroline, you home?" Liz knocked on her daughter's door.

"No, she's not," Liz whirled around to see Damon standing behind her, "but I'm here."

"Damon." Liz smiled before hugging her Vampire friend tightly.

"How are you doing Liz?" Damon asked good naturally as he hugged her back.

"Forget about me, you're here and you're alive!" Liz exclaimed as she stepped back and pinched herself to see that she wasn't hallucinating, "how is this possible, I buried your body!?"

"It's a long story that I would be more than happy to tell my favorite Sherriff over coffee." Damon offered with his most charming smile.

"Do the others know you're here, is Bonnie with you?" Liz asked him as they began walking down the stairs.

"Stefan does and he's probably told the others by know. Bonnie didn't come with me, but she's here." Damon told her as they rounded a corner.

Once they had rounded the corner, Damon, to Liz's great surprise, got behind her and put her in a neck lock. Liz gasped for air before she began to lose consciousness. She realized that Damon's goal was not to kill her, but to knock her out.

"I'm sorry for this Liz, but I don't have a choice." She heard Damon whisper in her ear remorsefully as she blacked out.

Brooke's house

11:11 A.M.

"So, what do you think Julian's next move will be?" Alaric asked Luna and Brooke curiously.

"Well, he now has Damon at his mercy. He'll most likely send Damon out to do something terrible and then he'll have Damon call us with his demands." Luna said after some thought.

As if in answer, Caroline's phone began ringing. Digging it out of her pocket, she saw that it was her mother. Smiling apologetically at everyone, Caroline moved to the back of the room as she answered it to not disturb them.

"Hi mom now's not a good time." Caroline answered her phone apologetically.

"I'm sorry you feel that way Blondie."

"Why do you my mom's phone Damon?" Caroline asked nervously all kinds of scenarios running through her head as everyone stopped talking to listen to the conversation.

"Don't worry, Liz is fine," Damon assured her on the other line in the back of a van with Liz's unconscious form, "she's out cold, but fine."

"Let me guess, Julian is having you call with his demands?" Caroline guessed as she turned back to the others.

"I see you're up to speed, which means the others made it back, good. Is Brooke there?" Damon asked her.

"Yeah, she's here," Caroline walked over to Brooke and handed her phone, "he wants to talk to you."

"Damon?" Brooke answered.

"Under normal circumstances, I'd be happy to hear from you Queeny," Damon smiled bitterly; "you know why I'm calling?"

"What are Julian's demands?" Brooke asked him wearily as everyone listened intently.

"You remember that necklace your mom got you for your twenty second birthday? Julian wants you to hand it over or Liz Forbes will die." Damon told her solemnly.

"You know I can't do that Damon." Brooke told him not wanting Julian's hands on it.

"Then he'll force me to kill Liz or he'll kill Peyton and my child. I don't want to kill Liz, she's like family, but I will. When it comes to a choice between the woman carrying my child and anyone else, she wins every time. You have until five P.M. to call me before she dies." Damon told her sadly before hanging up.

"Damn it!" Brooke cursed as she handed Caroline her phone.

"What's so special about this necklace that Julian wants?" Alaric asked gently.

"How familiar are you guys with Greek mythology?" Brooke asked tiredly.

"I think we're all a little rusty." Alaric said after several seconds of silence.

"well, the Greek gods weren't exactly gods, they were Witches," Brooke explained as everyone but Luna paid extra close attention to her, "there was one that was more famous than any: a man named Kronos, known to the world back then as the king of the Titans, that's what his coven called themselves.

"Kronos had somehow opened a portal to another dimension that was home to a species of creatures that he learned to control. He opened the portal and wreaked havoc on the world with them. Damon told me about Klaus, well imagine Klaus as a very power powerful Witch with complete control over an army of creatures the size of skyscrapers that no one can stop and you Kronos. Kronos was even more ruthless than Klaus; he ruled the entire world with an iron fist.

"But like all tyrant, one day someone rose up against him. His sons, Hades, Poseidon, and Zeus one day ambushed him and killed him. They then took his tools that he had used to control the creatures to send them back to their own dimension before closing the portal. The three brothers decided to divide the tools between them so that no one would ever do what their father had: Hades took the scathe of time; Poseidon took the necklace of the sea, and Zeus took the crown of heaven. These items have been passed down through their families for centuries, the tale always being told to each new member so they never forget their sacred duty to guard these items from those who wish to follow in Kronos' footsteps."

"So…this necklace Julian wants…" Matt trailed off as everyone saw where he was going.

"It's the necklace that Poseidon and his family need to guard," Brooke nodded, "no matter what; we can't let Julian get his hands on it."

"We can't let my mom die either!" Caroline objected violently.

"We won't, we just have to figure out a way to get Damon to Liz go." Alaric told them all reasonably.

"Um, not to burst anyone's bubble, but our plans suck," Jeremy interjected, "Damon's plans are the only ones that work."

"Which is why, in order for this to work, we need to think like Damon." Stefan told the hunter.

Unspecified Location

12:05 A.M.

"What's going on Damon, why are we here?" Liz asked Damon as she sat tied to a wooden chair.

"We're here because I have no choice." Damon told her simply.

"What is going on Damon, have you been compelled?" Liz asked causing Damon to laugh humorlessly.

"I wish it were that simple, but the truth is much darker. The world is on the verge of war Liz." Damon told her grimly.

"The world is already at war." Liz pointed out confused.

"I mean a Supernatural war," Damon told her and she paled, "exactly, bad. On one side is your daughter, my siblings, Elena, and everyone else. And on the other, is not a coven, but an army of Witches lead by a very powerful and _very_ crazy Witch named Julian Baker. Julian holds someone very close to me hostage and unless I do exactly as he says, he will kill her."

"Who is he holding hostage?" Liz asked as she tried to process this information.

"My wife, who I have believed to be dead for fifteen years but was actually trapped in a prison dimension created by Julian where she didn't age, you want to know the real kicker in all this? She's pregnant with my kid." Damon laughed bitterly.

"Damon…how is that even possible?" Liz asked stunned by the bombshell.

"Like hell I know. I know what you're thinking, how do I know the babies mine? I know because in my lifetime, I have known only people on this earth that are as good as they claim to be. One is you and the other is her. She's not that kind of person, if she says it mine then it's mine." Damon told her firmly.

"…What's her name, tell me about her." Liz requested curiously.

"Her name is Peyton Sawyer and I first met her on a bridge fifteen years ago," Damon told her as he began thinking back, "at first I was just gonna eat her but there was something different about her. There was a light in her eyes that most humans don't have, but also a fierceness. In a world of people who only see the bad in me, she is one of two who has only ever seen the good in me... and I don't understand why."

"You should give yourself more credit Damon," Liz said causing him to look at her strangely, "what she sees, what Elena and Stefan see, it's what I see to: you're not as bad as you think you are. You have saved this town more than once; you have saved my daughter, saved me. You think that you're this bad man but you're not Damon, you are a good man Damon Salvatore."

"If you knew things about me, things about my past, things that I've done, you wouldn't say that." Damon said darkly.

"I don't need to know. Who you are now is not who you were, let the past stay in the past." Liz told him sagely.

Damon's retort was interrupted by Liz's phone ringing. Taking out of his pocket, Damon looked at the screen and grimaced in displeasure at the familiar blond picture before answering it.

"Hey Blondie what's up?" Damon asked in a casual voice.

"I have the necklace, where do you want to meet?" Caroline got right down to business.

"Meet me at the place on Whitmore campus where they had that party when I came to try and save Elena from Silas," Damon told her as he turned away from Liz, "I was kind of hoping that you guys would have found a way out of this."

"I can't take that chance with my mom's life." Caroline told him softly.

"I take I t the others don't know about this call," her silence was all the answer he needed, "I get it, the bond between parent and child is a sacred thing."

"Speaking of, I guess congratulations are in order. I hear you're gonna be a dad." Caroline told him warmth seeping into her voice.

"Tell you what, when all this is over you can throw Peyton a baby shower." Damon promised her grinning.

"I look forward to it, but how do you plan to deal with Julian?" Caroline asked with concern.

"The second Peyton is out of danger, he is gonna know pain and suffering like he has never know before." Damon promised her before hanging up.

 **Please ;eave any thoughts or Comments in a review or PM me.**


	4. First battle of the war

**Disclaimer: owning both the Vampire Diaries and One Tree Hill would make today an awesome Birthday, but somethings are just not meant to be.**

 **Okay, a reviewer said that they think that the main thing of this is the triangle I have created. While the triangle is a big part of this, it's not the main thing here. The main thing here, I would like to clear up, is the effect the child of Damon and Peyton has on Damon and his relationships with his siblings, friends, and basically everyone around him. Now that that's cleared up, on with the story!**

Brooke's house, September 7th

2:07 P.M.

"Hey, you alright?" Luna asked Elena as she walked out onto the balcony where Elena was looking out over the area.

"Yeah I'm…not fine, I'm really, _really_ not fine," Elena confessed as she looked over at the Salvatore sister, "I don't understand how Damon could not even mention that he was married or that he had a sister. And now that his wife is back, what does that mean for our relationship? I'm sorry; I must sound like a spoiled brat right?""

"No, you don't and I think I can answer your questions," Elena started paying close attention to the older Vampire; "not mentioning me has more to do with Stefan than Damon, Stefan and I have a very complicated relationship. It was like one day he was big brother and then the next he completely shut me out and I never understood why. Every time I tried to reach out to Stefan over the years, he would shun me."

"I…never knew that Stefan had that side to him." Elena said unable to reconcile the Stefan Luna spoke of and the one Elena knew.

"We all do, some of us just hide it under a façade of goodness. Stefan likes to think he's the victim of our family's story, but you know that old saying: Villains are the heroes of their own stories." Luna looked out over the balcony.

"Still, why didn't Damon tell me about Peyton?" Elena asked the blond.

"Take what you have felt since Damon died and imagine feeling that way for almost thirteen years. It's a pain that even turning off your emotions can't take away; every waking moment is one of pure agony. The only time that pain started going away is when he began falling in love with you. He didn't want to talk about it because it was the most painful thing to ever happen to him and as for what this means for your relationship… I don't know. I know that he loves you…but I also know that he loves Peyton just as much."

The woods near Whitmore College

5:00 P.M.

In the field where he had once franticly search for Elena with Caroline, Damon stood as he held Liz firmly yet gently. Hearing someone stepping out of a car, Damon looked ahead and, with his enhanced sight, could see Caroline walking over with the emerald necklace that belonged to Brooke. His heart sinking over the implications of this, Damon steeled himself as Caroline approached with a matching steel glint in her eyes.

"You sure the others didn't follow you?" Damon inquired without looking away from her.

"It took me a few twists and turn maneuvers but I lost them," Caroline assured him as she held up the necklace, "now give me my mom and you get the necklace."

"Nice try, but no," Damon told her with a dry smile, "hand over the necklace and Liz goes home unharmed. I appreciate you efforts though."

Sneering at him, Caroline marched over and held out the emerald necklace. Looking like he was as pleased at this as she was, Damon reached out and took it from her grasp. Damon quickly untied Liz's rope-bound hands and Liz and Caroline immediately grabbed each other in a tight hug. Caroline placed something in her mother's hands and Liz quickly whirled around. Liz trained two pistols on Damon as a shimmering in the air quickly revealed Stefan, Luna, Elena, Bonnie, Alaric, Enzo, Jeremy, and Brooke.

"Well well, the gangs all here. All we need is the Quarterback and wolf boy." Damon said sarcastically as he glanced at his friends, family, and allies surrounding him.

"Damon, we don't want to fight you. Just surrender and let's get out here brother." Stefan pleaded with his brother.

"I wish I could Stef, but if I do than Peyton is as good as dead. I can't let that happen." Damon told his brother regretfully.

"Yeah, thanks for telling that you were married _boyfriend_." Elena spat at him angrily.

"The same way you told Stefan about Denver _girlfriend_ ," Damon shot back and Elena flushed, "I'm not here for group therapy Elena, I'm here for the necklace."

"Damon, if you take that to Julian, he will use it to unleash hell on earth." Brooke reminded him desperately.

"I know, but if I don't Peyton and my child will die. If you try and stop me, I will fight back with everything I have." Damon promised coldly.

"You realized that you're surrounded right?" Jeremy pointed out in disbelief.

"Do you really think that Julian would send me after Liz, someone he knows I care about, alone?" Damon asked sarcastically as the air shimmered again and people appeared behind Damon.

There were five Witches, three cloaked and two uncloaked. One of the uncloaked Witches was a male, Caucasian man around Brooke and Alaric's age with a shaved head and cold, brown eyes that reminded everyone present of a dark cave. The other was a Caucasian woman that looked like she was in her early thirties with long, dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. There was something different about her compared to the man, like she wanted to be there as much as Damon, but had no choice.

"It doesn't matter; we'll just kill them all." Enzo said callously.

"If you do that Enzo, then Brooke is going to be mighty pissed at you. And trust when I say the Queen Witch is not an enemy you want to have." Damon warned his old friend.

"Damon, what are you talking about?" Brooke asked confused when the female Witch spoke.

"Do you really not recognize me? I know it's been fifteen years, but I thought you would…mom." The Witch said causing Brooke's gaze top snap towards her as something seemed to click in her mind.

"Sam?" Brooke gasped in shock.

"That' right Queeny, little Sami Walker went and got all grown up." Damon told her cheekily, "So tell me, will really fight the one you love as a daughter to the death? Will you stand by as Enzo tries to kill her?"

"Enough Damon!" Alaric shouted.

Alaric blurred towards him and tackled him, taking the two Vampires into the woods. With that, the battle was on as the Witches, Vampires, and the Sherriff began an all-out brawl. In the woods, Damon was slammed against a tree as Alaric held him against a tree. Damon struggled against his hold, but Alaric wasn't an Original for nothing.

"Give up Damon; we don't have to fight like this." Alaric tried to compel his friend to give in.

"I CAN'T!" Damon shouted as he overpowered the compulsion with pure willpower.

Damon punched him and, surprised, Alaric loosened his grip which was all Damon needed. Breaking out of Alaric's hold, Damon kicked him in the neck which sent him through a tree. As Alaric sat up painfully, he realized something: while he may be more powerful, Damon had over a century of experience on him. That experience may be what allowed Damon to overcome him, something that Alaric couldn't let happen.

"We don't have to do this Damon, let us help you." Alaric begged as the two friends circled each other.

"I wish I could buddy, but I can't," Damon said regretfully as he looked for openings, "I can't take the chance that Julian will find out and retaliate against Peyton. Maybe one day you will understand why I have to do this…but today is not that day."

Alaric lunged for him and Damion kicked a piece of the broken tree that had broken into a large stake into the air. Damon grabbed hold of it and plunged it into Alaric's chest. Alaric gasped as Damon looked remorsefully as his friend died temporally.

"Sorry buddy, hopefully I'll be gone by the time you get up." Damon said softly as he lowered his friend's body to the ground.

Back with the others, the three cloaked Witches had been killed Enzo, Liz and Jeremy while Stefan, Luna, and Elena were struggling with the male Witch who was proving himself to be a formable opponent. Meanwhile, Brooke, Caroline, and Bonnie were facing off with Sam. Well, more like Caroline and Bonnie were facing off with while Brooke was trying to talk her down.

"Sam please, I don't understand! Why are you helping Julian?" Brooke asked her former foster daughter desperately.

"The same reason Damon is." Sam said simply as cast a spell that blew Bonnie across the woods.

"So you're doing it to protect Peyton?" Brooke asked as Caroline went to help Bonnie.

"No." Sam said stoically.

Suddenly, Liz felt someone grab one of the pistols of her hand and blur away. Elena was about to try and attack the Male Witch with Stefan backing her up when someone grabbed her and blurred her away. She was slammed against a tree near Bonnie and Caroline who gasped as they saw what was happening. Elena and everyone looked to see Damon holding Elena against the tree with Liz's pistol against her chest.

"Now here's what's gonna happen everyone," Damon said with a voice as cold as ice, "the three of us walk out of here with that necklace or Elena gets a wooden bullet in her chest."

"How are you so sure it's wooden Damon?" Liz challenged.

"Because I know how much of a control freak your daughter is." Damon told her and Caroline looked down silently cursing herself.

"You'd really kill me Damon? You told me once you would always choose me." Elena reminded him curiously wanting to see how far he would take this.

"And that was true at the time and it's still true for most situations. But like I told Brooke, in a choice between the mother of my child and anyone else, she wins…even if 'anyone else' is you Elena." Damon told her looking her in the eyes so could see his tormented blue orbs.

Elena almost slumped to the tree, only not doing so because Damon's grip held her in place. For the first time in years, she was not Damon Salvatore's number one priority; it left her with a bitter taste in her mouth just thinking the worlds. She didn't like to think of herself as a petty creature, but she had loved that Damon had always put her first; it was one of the things that made her first begin to fall for him. And now there was another woman in his life that he loved as much as he loved her and was bonded to him in a way that Elena would never be. And Elena knew Damon would sacrifice anything, including her, to protect that bond.

"You're not going to kill her Damon." Caroline said as she stood up.

"And why is that Blondie?" Damon asked without turning away from her.

"Because you love her," Caroline stated boldly as she stared at him confidently, "I'm not sure what you feel for Peyton, but I know you love Elea. That kind of love just doesn't disappear overnight; you won't kill her because you love her too much."

Everyone held their breath as they waited to see Damon's next move. Jeremy was preparing to fire his crossbow at Damon when the Vampire lowered the pistol to his side. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as Damon let go of Elena and stepped back slowly. Sam and the Male Witch eyed him curiously, wondering what he would do next.

"You're right Blondie, I _do_ love her too much to kill her," Damon told Caroline as he looked at her, "you on the other hand…"

The next thing Caroline knew, Damon had grabbed her from behind, with one arm around her and the other holding the pistol to her chest. Elena, Bonnie, Liz all yelled in protest while Stefan and Enzo looked on in horror. The Male Witch smirked, impressed by Damon's gale while Sam looked on in sympathy for both Carolina and Damon, understanding the difficult position Damon was in.

"Now everyone, think real hard about how much Caroline Forbes means to you, because anyone makes a move to attack and I will end her." Damon told them in a steely voice.

"Damon please, she's my best friend." Stefan tried to plead with his brother.

"so was Lexi and we all know what happened to her," Damon reminded him and Stefan flinched at the memory, "you know Stefan, you, Elena, Luna, and Liz all keep trying to tell me that I'm not a monster. When the truth is you've had it right all these years: I am the villain of this sad saga we call our lives."

"Then do it," Caroline said bravely refusing to look at him, "pull the trigger and kill me now."

"Don't do this Damon." Liz begged him in a choked voice.

"I know you took the crystal Luna, hand it over to Sam." Damon ordered seeming to ignore Liz.

Luna took the crystal out of her jacket pocket, staring at it conflicted. The last thing in the world she wanted to do was hand this over to Julian, but…. She glanced over at Liz and she was undone by the pleading gaze of the human. If there was one thing she had in common with Stefan, it was her compassion. Walking over to Sam, she handed the Witch the emerald necklace with great reluctance.

"Now Sam, Xavier, get out of here. Don't even think about trying to stop them." Damon warned as he pressed the pistol into Caroline's chest and she grimaced.

Xavier immediately fled while Sam hesitated. She glanced over at Brooke longingly and Brooke returned her gaze before Sam turned and followed Xavier. Once they were out of sight, Damon released Caroline and Liz enveloped her daughter in a hug. Damon didn't his guard down as Stefan and Enzo were on side and Elena and Bonnie on the other. Brooke was too stunned by the appearance of her former foster daughter to help them.

"Damon, just stand down." Stefan pleaded once more.

"Let us help you Damon." Bonnie pleaded with the Vampire.

"And if I do, who will protect Peyton from Julian?" Damon pointed out to which they had no answer, "You know it's too bad that Little Gilbert needs medical attention."

There confusion quickly turned to horror when Damon took aim and fired the pistol at Jeremy. Jeremy cried out as he went down, clutching his now pleading shoulder. With Elena and Bonnie rushing over to his side, Damon made his move by snapping brother and Enzo's necks before blurring off. When the others realized what had happened, Damon was long gone.

Julian's hideout in Virginia

6:07 P.M.

"Good job Damon," Julian said as he held the necklace I n his hands jovially, "you might get a raise or something."

"I do not work for you and this not something I enjoy. Stop acting like it is!" Damon growled menacingly with Xavier and Sam standing behind.

"But as long as Peyton's life is in my hands, you _do_ work for me." Julian smirked smugly at his arch-enemy.

"And the day she is out of danger will be the day you die." Damon growled taking a threatening step closer to Julian.

"But today is not that day, is it? Damon, Sam you are dismissed." Julian waved his hand dismissively.

Glaring at him hatefully, Damon turned around and stormed out of the room with Sam following him. Xavier waited until the door was closed before approaching Julian.

"Sir, are you sure we can trust them?" Xavier asked him curiously.

"No, but as long as I have my leverage against them, they will do everything I saw." Julian smirked sadistically.

Down the hall, Damon slammed his fist against the wall as he seethed. Sam stood back a little, waiting for him to calm down. She had known Damon long enough to know when not to approach him.

"So tell me," Damon said in a calm voice as he turned around, "what's Julian got on you? I know you well enough to know you hate him as much as Brooke, so what's he got on you that makes you work for him?"

Wordlessly, Sam pulled out her phone and began going through the photos until she landed on the one she was looking for. She held up her phone so he could see the picture: it was of a little girl about four years old. She had dark brown hair like Sam's and a big grin that matched her sparkling brown eyes, she was like a miniature Sam and it clicked in Damon's mind who this was a picture of.

"Your daughter, he has your daughter." Damon realized stunned.

"Her name is Brooke Haley Walker. Six months ago, I was on my way to Brooke's to introduce them when Julian and napped her. I've been working for him ever since and I haven't seen her ever since." Sam said sounding like she was about to burst into tears.

"Hey, look at me okay," Damon said as he took her face in his hands, "the day Peyton is out of danger is the day he dies…and the day he tells us where your little girl is at."

"Damon, thank you." Sam breathed grateful.

"I protect my family." Damon told her before walking away.

Damon walked into the room Peyton was at and stared. Where book cases were once at, now there was an organized record shelves that resembled the ones that had been in their home in Tree Hill. Peyton was going through them when she saw him. She turned, smiling that dazzling smile that had captured his heart years ago with that look in her green eyes that made him fall in love with her the first time he saw her.

"Hey." Peyton said simply as she walked over to him.

"Hey, what's all…this." Damon said as he gestured to the room.

"Oh, I told Julian if he was going to keep me prisoner here, then he needed to concede to my demands." Peyton said causally.

"And your demands were the music." Damon said for clarification.

"What else?" Peyton asked as if it were obvious.

"Even your enemies can't win against an agreement with you. I've missed you Peyton Sawyer." Damon smiled down at her.

"I've missed you to and I know things are complicated between us because of the baby, because of Julian, because of Elena. But we have each other throughout all of this." Peyton said softly as she took his hand.

 **So, what do you guys think? I know there wasn't a lot of interaction between Delena and Deyton (Damon and Peyton if you didn't get that), but there will be more as the story progresses. There will be a certain scene in between one of the couples that will have a lot of you talking in a couple chapters. Please leave any thoughts or comments you may have in a review or PM me. Reviews are to me like Bourbon is to Damon!**


	5. Search for the crown

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Julian's hideout, Damon and Peyton's room, September 8th

7:02 A.M.

Damon was sleeping on the couch which faced Peyton's bed when both were awakened by someone knocking on the doors, Peyton groaned as Damon's eyes snapped open and he knew it was time. Without a word, Damon stood up from the couch and walked over to the doors before pulling it open as Peyton sat up in bed and looked over. Damon and Peyton relaxed ever so slightly when they saw that it was Sam on the other side of the door.

"Julian wants you in his office." Sam told him grimly.

"Well, duty calls." Damon said bitterly as he glanced back at Peyton.

"Don't worry; I'll keep an eye on her." Sam promised him.

Damon nodded at her and looked back at Peyton one last time before he walked out of the room. He walked down the hallway, imagining all the ways he could torture Julian when all this was over before coming to a stop at Julian's door. Schooling his face into an expressionless mask, Damon entered the room of his enemy. Julian sat at his desk, cradling the necklace in his hands as Xavier stood next to him. As they looked up at him as he closed the door behind him, their smug expressions made Damon's hatred for them grow.

"Damon, how nice of you to join us." Julian said as if this was an unexpected surprise.

"You called me remember." Damon snapped as he walked over to them.

"Ah yes, I have your next assignment," Julian said as he put the necklace down, "we've acquired the necklace of the seas, and now we are going after the crown of heaven."

"And let me guess, you already have an idea where it is?" Damon replied grimly.

"I've had fifteen years to trace Kronos's lineage, to find out which familiar guard the three tools I need. You actually know the family who guards the crown." Julian told him calmly.

"I do?" Damon asked confused.

"You remember the two Witches who arrived to help with the Travelers?" Julian reminded him.

"Blonde and Blonder?" Damon asked as he recalled the Parker twins.

"Yes, and I've noticed that your friend, Tyler Lockwood, has grown close to the female." Julian told him and Damon's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Wolf-boy and Crazy Locks?" Damon asked surprised and amused.

"I believe, with the right motivation, Tyler could be persuaded to get her to open up to him about her family. Perhaps he could get the location of the crown. You and Xavier will go and get him to cooperate, any questions?" Julian barked out that last part.

"Yeah, why do I need Cue ball's help on this?" Damon asked as he and Xavier shot daggers at each other.

"You really don't think I trust you on an assignment alone after you threatened me last night do you? Besides, considering how much you two hate each other, I look forward to the show." Julian smiled in sadistic pleasure.

"Let's just go." Damon growled at Xavier before the two walked out of the room.

Brooke's house

7:45 A.M.

"Hey, how's Jeremy?" Luna said as she let Elena and Alaric into the house.

"He's recovering, but he refuses to let me heal him. Something about how Hunters shouldn't accept help from Vampires." Elena rolled her eyes at her brother's pride.

"One thing I've learned in my years as a Vampire is that, older or younger, brothers don't like accepting help from their sisters." Luna told her with a smile.

"So any new developments? "Alaric asked as they walked farther into the house and Alaric and Elena noticed some yelling.

"Well, Brooke had an idea, but not everyone is on board with it." Luna informed them as they walked into the kitchen to a scene that looked like something out of a drama.

Caroline and Brooke stood on opposite sides of the room, yelling words so loudly that even the Vampires couldn't make them out. There seemed to be battle lines drawn, as Bonnie stood behind Caroline and Enzo stood behind Brooke. In contrast to them, Stefan stood in the center of the room, looking like a little could who couldn't pick a side between mom and dad. Elena and Alaric took all this in, wondering what on earth was going on.

"What on earth is going on here?" Alaric asked Luna as he observed his students going at it like a couple of dogs in a dog fight.

"Caroline thinks we should try and capture Damon so he can't work against us and will be forced to work with us. Brooke has a different plan, Brooke thinks we should try and rescue Peyton so that Julian won't have any leverage against Damon." Luna told them blankly as she stepped back and observed.

"So obviously Bonnie and Enzo have picked sides and Stefan is stuck in the crossroads. So, which side are you on?" Alaric asked Luna curiously as he thought about the options.

"Personally, I think Brooke's plan makes more sense. It also doesn't help that I think Caroline just wants my brother to pay for kidnapping her mother and attempting to kill her yesterday." Luna said as the talks quieted down as everyone quieted down.

"Look, I'm not saying we just leave Peyton, I'm just saying that we go back to where she is being held with Damon once we have his help!" Caroline shouted at the Witch Queen.

"And in the meantime, can you guarantee that Peyton won't be killed by Julian? If she and the baby die because we go through with your plan, Damon will never stop hating us!" Brooke shouted at the short sighted blonde.

"And how do we know the baby is even his?" Caroline shouted back frustrated.

Everyone immediately knew Caroline had gone too far when the anger in Brooke's eyes turned to pure rage. One minute Brooke was standing, the next she fell to her knees clutching her head as she screamed in agony. They knew it was not an ordinary pain infliction when Caroline's nose started to bleed. Bonnie readied herself to strike when Luna shot her a look telling her back off before Blurring over to Brooke and putting an arm on her friends shoulder.

"Don't stoop to her level, calm down." Luna told her in a soothing voice.

This seemed to do the trick as Caroline's screams died down and Bonnie and Elena helped her stand up, everyone now knowing that Brooke was not someone they wanted as an enemy. Alaric stepped in between the two groups, not wanting them to cause another scene similar to that.

"Look, neither of your plans are perfect, but they both have benefits if they succeed. How about we split into two groups so that we can try both plans?" Alaric suggested cautiously.

"The man has a point." Enzo pointed out.

"Fine with me, fine with you?" Brooke asked the blonde Vampire stiffly.

"Fine with me," Caroline said shakily as she eyed the Witch realizing just how powerful she was, "so who goes with who?"

"I won't make anyone come with me if they don't want to." Brooke said point blank.

"I'll go with Caroline and Bonnie." Elena volunteered.

"Why am I not surprised?" Brooke scoffed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Elena demanded

"It's just that if your plan works and ours fails, if worst comes to worst, Peyton will die. If that happens, you will have Damon all to yourself." Brooke pointed out bitterly.

"You really think I'm that selfish?" Elena demanded hurt that one of Damon's oldest friends thought she that much like Katherine.

"No, but I think you're capable of being that selfish. Every person, human or Vampire, doesn't know just how selfish they truly are until their faced with an opportunity shows the darkest parts of your soul, their defining moment. It looks like this is yours." Brooke warned not unkindly and Elena understood that she was trying to advise her, not hurt her feelings.

"I'll go with them, keep an eye on them even though I don't agree with the plan." Alaric told them and Brooke nodded.

"Stefan?" Caroline asked her best friend hopefully who only looked more torn.

"It looks like you're faced with the same choice as you were in 1944 Stefan," Luna noted and her brother turned to her, "the question isn't what plan you'll choose. The question is whether you'll finally honor your responsibilities as a brother and a member of this family. Will you Stefan, or will you turn your back on Damon for a pretty face again?"

Everyone turned to the younger Salvatore brother, wondering what he would do. Stefan clenched his fists so hand that even his Vampire skin began to bleed. Then, he unclenched his fists as he apparently made his decision. Caroline, who had expected him to side with her, nearly dropped her jaw as he walked over to stand beside Brooke, Luna, and Enzo.

"Stefan?" Caroline all but squeaked.

"I'm sorry Caroline but…he's my brother and Luna is my sister. As for the baby," Stefan paused, looking over at Brooke nervously before continuing as he turned back to Caroline, "I'm not sure what to think about this baby that may or may not be my niece or nephew, but Damon and Luna believe that is, so that's good enough for me. And Peyton Sawyer is Damon's wife, so she's part of my family."

Just outside Mystic Falls

8:01 A.M.

Matt was helping a man named Xavier with a flat tire. Matt had been on patrol for his militia group when he spotted this man outside the border with a flat tire on his black Volvo. Matt got a strange vibe of this guy, but tried to ignore it. This was just the kind of guy he was, the guy who helped out everyone, even complete strangers.

"Well that should do it," Matt said as he stood up and held his hand out to Xavier, "I hope you have a safe journey. I gotta get back to town; otherwise I'd help you out more."

"Yeah, you're not going anywhere." Xavier told him in a confident voice.

Matt is confused for a moment until he feels a light breeze behind him. His hair stands on end and his heart rate skyrockets. Turning around slowly, cautiously, his heart sinks when he sees Damon standing behind him with an unreadable expression on his face and a cold look in his blue eyes.

"Damon." Matt gasped in horror.

"Long time Matty McGolden-boy." Damon said coldly before unleashing his Vampire face and biting into Matt's neck as the human screams.

Julian's hideout

8:05 A.M.

"Ugg, what has happened to music while I have been gone?!" Peyton demanded in horror as she turned the radio station as Sam watched in amusement.

"Not everyone is a regular Peyton Sawyer." Sam said barely containing a laugh.

"Don't sass me; I used to help you with homework." Peyton scolded and Sam laughed.

"You already sound like a mom." Sam said with a wistful smile.

"Speaking from experience?" Peyton noted the almost longing tone in her voice.

"Five years ago, I was in a relationship, it was serious," Sam began with a shuttering breath and a sad look, "I found out I was pregnant and was gonna tell him and…that's when I learned he was married to some woman named Carol. I didn't tell him and I walked away. I had a decent job and a stable living situation and a lot of money put away from a trust that Brooke had set for me before I moved back in with Rebecca and Rebecca left me all her money when she passed away a few years before, so being a single mother wasn't that hard."

"You didn't tell Brooke?" Peyton realized surprised.

"I…was afraid of what she would think of me. It was stupid, I know," Sam said as Peyton opened her mouth to argue, "but that was how I felt. Six months ago, I was on my way to Brooke's to introduce her to my daughter when Julian and his cronies came and knocked me out. When I woke up, Julian was there, but his cronies and my daughter were gone. If I ever want to see my daughter again, I have to do what he says."

"Oh, Sam." Peyton walked over and wrapped an arm around the woman who was about to break down.

And break down she did. Sam leaned her head on Peyton's shoulder and let out all the emotions she had been holding in for the last six months. She let out a heart wrenching sob as she clung to the woman she had known since she was fifteen years old, who was like an aunt to her.

Whitmore College

8:45 A.M.

Tyler was walking to his next class when someone blocked his path. Tyler didn't recognize the man, but he gave off a bad vibe. Not like a drug dealer vibe, but a supernatural vibe, the vibe that Tyler himself used to give off. So Tyler tried to reign in his temper and remain calm as he stared down this individual who seemed to want something from him.

"Something I can help you with Mr.…" Tyler trailed off.

"Xavier Daniels," Xavier introduced himself as he pulled out his cell phone and dialing a number before giving Tyler the phone, "you'll want to answer when he picks up."

Confused and with alarms going off in his head, Tyler took the phone and put it to his ear. As he waited for the person on the other line to answer, he stared at Xavier, who was smirking at him in a smug way that didn't piss him off, but unnerved him in a way that he couldn't explain. Once the phone was answered, Tyler got all the answers he didn't want.

"What's going on Wolf boy, or is Ex-Wolf boy now?" Damon asked him in a false cheerful voice.

"Damon?" Tyler asked with growing dread.

"Listen, I'll cut to the chase instead of torturing with my usually one liners: I've got your pal Quarterback here, you do what we say and he goes free relatively unharmed. But if you try anyway to sabotage this, than his survival is as questionable as Little Gilberts intelligence." Damon warned him bluntly.

"Okay, what do you want?" Tyler growled his temper starting to get the better of him.

"Information, information that you will get for me. Did Brooke tell you the story about the three sons of Kronos?" Damon asked him impatiently.

"Yeah, but I thought you guys had the necklace?" Tyler asked growing confused.

"We do, but let me give a little history lesson: after the three items of power were divided between the sons, the items were passed down within the families of the brothers to be protected for centuries. The crown of heaven, protected by Zeus, was passed through his family, which eventually became known as the Gemini Coven. And you share class with a certain member, members actually, twins in fact." Damon paused as he waited for Tyler to catch his drift.

"Wait, you mean that…" Tyler trailed of as he grasped what Damon was saying.

"Liv and Luke Parker are descendants of Zeus, and if Witches were anything like they are today back then, then Zeus boasted about it to his family, made it into a legend. You are going to charm her, get her to open up to you about her family, and get any and all information you can about the crown. Its location, who's guarding it, any defenses it has, everything she knows about it. Xavier will be watching, so don't think you can alert the others." Damon ordered him coldly.

"Got it." Tyler growled before hanging up and giving the phone back to Xavier.

With Damon

8:48 A.M.

"Well that takes care of that." Damon said as he hung up his phone and turned to face Matt who was tied to a chair with blood on his neck from where Damon had bit him.

"Look, I get why you're doing this, I even support it, but you got what you wanted. Tyler is getting the information for you; can't you just let me go?" Matt begged the Vampire.

"Can't do that Busboy, you are our leverage against Tyler should he get ant ideas." Damon told him as he walked over to a computer monitor that showed multiple shots of what Matt assumed was the outside of wherever they were.

"Where are we anyway?" Matt asked trying to get any information out of Damon that he could.

"A Warehouse near Mystic Falls, Julian set this up a few in case he ever needed a place to stash something important." Damon told him as he checked the video feed and he saw something move.

Outside the warehouse, Alaric, Caroline, Bonnie, and Elena looked around the outside. Bonnie had managed to track Damon here with a tracking spell after Elena had given her one of Damon's shirts. They were all confused about why Damon would be here but they didn't have time to question it.

"So why so you think Damon's here?" Bonnie asked as they slowly and cautiously moved round the corner.

"Julian probably sent him here on another mission." Alaric deduced thoughtfully.

"More children he can torture, yah." Caroline said sourly causing Elena to shoot her an angry glare.

"You need to let go of your anger for what happened yesterday Car." Bonnie advised her sagely.

"He kidnapped my mom and tried to kill me!" Caroline shouted and everyone shushed her as they peered around the corner to see if anyone heard her.

"Keep it down would you!" Elena hissed quietly.

"Caroline, if Damon had wanted you dead or wished your mother harm, he'd have done a lot more than what he did." Alaric told her almost scolding.

Caroline opened her mouth to protest when the Vampires heard a sound. It was a buzzing, not like a bumblebee's buzzing, but an electrical buzzing. As the three of them looked around for the source with Bonnie wondering what they were doing, Damon typed in a code before pushing enter on the keyboard. Outside, the three Vampires and the Witch screamed in agony as they were shocked with electricity. Damon pushed backspace and it stopped before the four of them fell to the ground unconscious.

With the others

9:03 A.M.

"You sure we're in the right place sweetheart?" Enzo asked as he, Stefan, Luna, and Brooke stood in the middle of nowhere.

"Yes, I don't understand. The tracking spell with Stefan's blood should have worked." Brooke said completely out of her mind with confusion and worry.

"Unless Julian has a cloaking spell on this place." Luna pointed out.

"Wait, I thought tracking spells couldn't find anything with a cloaking spell on it." Stefan interrupted confused.

"They can't in most cases, but Julian's never been the most thorough when it comes to cloaking spells. We can find the place but we can't see or enter it." Brooke said frustration coloring her voice.

"So what now?" Stefan asked and everyone was silent.

Julian's hideout

9:07 A.M.

"So how is it, being pregnant with the first Vampire/human hybrid baby?" Sam asked her friend as Peyton was sketching something.

"It's…strange, but a good strange," Peyton smiled as she paused in her sketching and caressed her abdomen lovingly, "Damon and I always talked about adopting later on after I turned, well God seems to smile down on us and blessed us with this miracle."

"But?" Sam encouraged knowingly.

"But things are different now," Peyton sighed as she started to confess her doubts, "There's someone else in the picture now. This Elena girl has a hold on his heart that I don't, and if he stays with me is it because he chooses me or because of the baby? It's just so…"

Messed up?" Sam offered helpfully.

"Yeah, it's real messed up." Peyton sighed as she tried not to let her hormones make her cry.

"You're PEYTON SAWYER; the guy wrote a whole book about how much he loves you." Sam reminded her.

"Back then, it's been fifteen years. A lot has changed since then." Peyton pointed out as her insecurity began to show.

"You must be blind if you think that," Sam told her bluntly and Peyton looked at her confused, "I don't know about this Elena chick or Damon's relationship with her, but I see the way he looks at you. It is clear to anyone who knows him that he is still just as in love you today as he was back then. What I do know is that they've been together for a year and I don't see a ring on her finger. He knew you for less than six months before he proposed. Peyton, he said his vows to you in front of God and he keeps his promises."

The Warehouse

9:17 A.M.

Groans were heard as Elena, Alaric, Bonnie, and Caroline all came to. As they sat up, they realized that they were in some sort of cage. As they looked around, just outside the cage they saw Matt tied to a chair with blood on his neck. Matt gave them a grim smile as they all stood up in the cage. Caroline walked over to the cage and was about to try and pull it open when a familiar voice spoke up.

"I wouldn't do that Blondie," Damon told her as he walked into view, "the cage is emitting thousands of volts of electricity. Trying to open it, even touching it is a bad idea, even for a Vampire."

"Damon, what's going on, why is Matt here?" Elena asked wondering why her best friend was being dragged into this.

"Well, Busboy is my leverage against Wolf boy." Damon told his Ex nonchalantly.

"Why the hell do you need leverage against Tyler?" Caroline hissed on him with a hateful glare that had no effect on the older Vampire.

"Julian wants information, information that only Tyler can get. Tyler needed a little persuasion, so I had Matt here help me out." Damon told the Blonde in the same uncaring voice as he pat Matt on the back.

"If by 'help' you mean biting me and abducting me, then yah." Matt said bitterly and Elena, Caroline, and Bonnie tensed as they all glared at Damon.

"Sorry Matt, but as long as Julian has Peyton, I'm required to be on my best-or I guess you could say worst-behavior." Damon said with some genuine remorse not simply directed at Matt, but at everyone in the room.

"Damon…why didn't you tell me about Peyton?" Elena couldn't help asking and Damon's indifferent mask fell revealing pain.

"Why didn't you tell any of us?" Alaric asked hurt that his best friend hadn't told him he was once married.

"Why don't you talk about your parents' deaths Elena? Why don't you go around talking about Jenna Ric," Damon snapped causing both of them to shrink back, "I didn't tell you because it was the worst thing to ever happen to me. I lost her, I lost myself, and I became everything she knew I wasn't. It caused me so much pain that even turning it off barely dulled it. That is why I didn't tell you, because I just could take the pain anymore."

"She must be pretty stupid to see nothing but good in you." Caroline muttered but everyone heard it.

Elena and Bonnie glared at her, Alaric gave her a disapproving look, and Matt gave her a disbelieving look that all made Caroline feel guilty. But it was Damon's reaction that made her confused: his unreadable expression returned and he walked over to a desk that had a computer monitor on it. Damon pulled open a drawer and pulled something out that none of them could see. As Damon turned around, they saw it was the pistol that he had stolen from Liz last night. Damon pointed it at Caroline and fired and the blonde Vampire cried out in pain as a wooden bullet hit her stomach. Elena and Bonnie rushed to her side, but no one really blamed Damon for his reaction.

"Insult the mother of my child again and I will kill you, no matter whose friend you are." Damon said in a dark voice that made no one doubt him before he put the pistol back on the desk.

"Um, not trying to insult her or anything, but why are you so sure that the kid is yours? I mean, it has been fifteen years and Vampires can't procreate…can they?" Matt asked curiously.

"I am sure that the baby is mine because she is one of two truly good people on this earth that I have met in my very long lifetime," Damon told the human as he set the gun by the monitor, "she would never lie to me. And she was in a prison world, where time stops, the baby would have stayed in the same stage of pregnancy as it was in when arrived there fifteen years ago. I'm not sure how it's possible, but it happened."

"And what happens after this baby is born? Are you and her just going to pick up where you left off?" Elena asked her voice trembling with insecurity and Damon's eyes softened.

"I'm not sure what will happen afterwards," Damon said as he stepped closer to the cage and Elena stood up and walked so close that the only thing separating them was the metal bars, "I love you Elena Gilbert, I never lied about that…but I have never, for even a second, stopped loving Peyton. She gave me light, hope, and meaning in my life at a time when I had none."

"And I guess it's easier going to the one who always chose you compared to the girl who has chosen your brother over you time after time." Elena looked away feeling tears forming so she didn't see Damon's disbelieving expression.

"Do you think that I'm that shallow? That I would be that petty?" Damon asked in a wounded voice.

"No…I just…this whole situation is a mess!" Elena finally shouted in frustration.

"Yes, it is," Damon agreed with a tight smile, "and I don't have time to juggle my feelings for you and Peyton because the second I step out of line, Julian will kill Peyton. What was it you once called me Elena, a Sociopath with no redeeming qualities? Well you were right, because that is who Julian will force me to become, so just forget about me, I'm not good."

"You're wrong Damon," surprisingly this came from not from Elena or even Alaric, but Bonnie, "I used to think that, I've thought that for the last three years. But then while we were in the prison world…you let me see another side to you. I saw the pained looks you would give your wedding picture, the way you refused to sleep in your and Peyton's bedroom, the empty look you get in your eyes as you'd walk around the house. You're not evil Damon; but you gone through things that no one should have to go through."

"He kidnapped my mother and tried to kill me!" Caroline protested as she dug the wooden bullet out of her stomach.

"Blondie, if had wanted you dead I would've killed you a very long time ago," Damon told her rolling his eyes at her inability to see the big picture, "and Liz is the only other truly good person I have met besides Peyton, I had no intention to harm her if I didn't have to."

"So you admit you would have killed her." Caroline said in victory and Damon sighed in frustration and exasperation.

"I don't expect you to understand; you aren't a parent and likely will never be one. But I'll do my best to explain this in a way that your cheerleader, short-sighted, control freak brain that is holding on to any reason to hate me can understand," Damon said in a low voice sent shivers down everyone's spines, "as a parent, you will do quite literally _anything_ to protect your child. You feel this surge of protectiveness that overwhelms you and a piece of your heart is there's before they are even born, because your life is about to change forever. Not in a bad way, but in the most amazing way possible."

The loving caress in his voice made all the women in the room get a little misty eyed. Even Caroline, struggling to hold on to her anger at him, was touched by the pure adoration in Damon's voice. Damon seemed lost in his own little world before his eyes seemed to focus and he turned his attention back to Caroline.

"Do you honestly think that Liz would not do the same as me if Julian had threatened your life? You like to look at this world as black and blue, people are either pure good or pure evil in your eyes. But when you live as long as I have, you learn that there is a lot of grey in this world. Sometimes people do bad things for good reasons and sometimes they do good things for bad reasons. Open your eyes Blondie; this isn't a TV show where the good guys always win and everyone lives happily ever after!" Damon shouted at her suddenly making everyone jump.

Before Caroline could even begin to form a response, Damon's cell phone went off over at the desk. Damon blurred over to it and picked it off the desk while checking the name. The others saw Damon smile a smile that was grim, satisfied, and sad all at the same time before he answered it.

"So what do you have for me Tyler?" Damon asked in an ominous voice as he answered the phone.

"I don't know how you expect me to get anything out of this girl; she's more hostile than Caroline when she's planning a dance." The Vampires heard Tyler complain over the phone.

Damon grimaced and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. Everyone watched tense, waiting to see what Damon would do next now that Tyler had failed. Damon reached over and picked up the pistol again and held it up as if examining it.

"I always knew you were Stupid Wolf boy, but I don't think you grasp the seriousness of the situation," Damon said coldly as he walked over and stood in front of Matt, "so allow me to educate you."

Without warning, Damon pointed the pistol at Matt and fired. Matt screamed in pain as a wooden bullet flew into his shoulder. The Vampires and Witch in the cage stood in alarm as Damon put the pistol to Matt's temple. Matt stared up at Damon as the cold metal against his head felt even colder than normal to him.

"That was me shooting him in the shoulder with a pistol," Damon informed Tyler coldly, "I am now holding it to busboy's head. So tell me Tyler, have you finally grasped the seriousness of the situation?"

"If you kill him, Elena will never forgive you!" Tyler shouted in desperation.

"If the only other alternative is to let Peyton and my child be killed by a psychopath, I think I can live with that," Damon said in the same cold voice ignoring Elena's hurt gaze as he hide his own internal turmoil, "this isn't something you'll understand until you're wife, girlfriend, or whatever tells you that you're going to be a father Tyler, but I will do whatever it takes to protect the woman carrying my child. And if you think I won't do it because I'll be giving up my leverage, think again. Caroline seems to have a vendetta against me and she dragged Elena, Bonnie, and Ric into it. I actually care about this hostages, well three of them, so don't make me do this Tyler. I don't want to do this, but I will."

"Okay, Okay! I'll try again, just don't hurt him!" Tyler told him pleadingly.

Everyone, including Damon, felt immense relief as Damon lowered his gun. Matt practically sagged into his chair as the women all sighed. Elena, despite her relief that Matt was alive, was shaken to her core by how far Damon was willing to take this. Damon, his hands almost shaking in relief, put the pistol back on the desk before returning his attention to Tyler.

"You have two hours to give me something I can report to Julian before things get ugly for Matt." Damon told Tyler before hanging up.

With the others

9:30 A.M.

Luna was punching a tree when Stefan walked up behind her. He stopped, simply watching his sister attack the tree, not quite sure what to say to her. Even as kids, they had never been particularly close. Stefan could admit that that was mostly his fault because he had let his jealousy over Luna's ability to get Damon to open up to her when he had shut Stefan out after their mother's death.

"You just gonna stand there all day or are you going to say something?" Luna grunted as she gave a round house kick to the tree which cut it in half.

"I never know what to say, never have." Stefan said with a tight smile.

"You could just listen." Luna told him as she turned around to face her brother.

"I've been told I'm good at that." Stefan told her with a half-smile.

"You never have with me." Luna reminded him coldly and Stefan winced.

"I know…I'm sorry for that. Look, I know I've been an even crappier brother to you than I have been to Damon, but I'd like to make up for that now if you'll let me. So, if want to talk…" Stefan trailed off.

"It just…sucks, it really sucks," Luna said angrily, "When I lost Peyton, I lost Damon to. He shut everyone out, even me. Just when he started reaching out to me again, he died and now that he and Peyton are back, Peyton is being held hostage by Julian, Damon is being forced to work for Julian under the threat of the lives of Peyton and there child, Sam is being blackmailed somehow and none of us can seem to help them! It doesn't help that your best pal Blondie McVendetta is dividing our group apart with her stupid plan that will end up getting Peyton killed! It just really sucks Stefan!"

"I'm not arguing with you. I know things seem really hopeless right now, but I promise you Luna we will save Damon, we'll save all of them, I promise." Stefan told her and she grabbed him, sobbing into his shoulder.

College bar

9:45 A.M.

"Liv, hey Liv!" Tyler called over to her as she served a table.

"I don't have time for this?" Liv muttered but he heard her as she approached.

"I wanted to apologize, I'm sorry for earlier, Werewolf temper and everything." Tyler said with a smile that was slightly forced.

"Well, apology accepted I guess." Liz muttered as she moved to turn away but Tyler reached out and grabbed her arm.

"Hey, sit with me for a minute." Tyler asked in a pleading tone and puppy dog eyes that made her reluctantly give in.

"What?" Liv grumbled as she sat across from him.

"Well, I heard a story recently from a Witch and I was wondering if you could tell me if there is any truth to it?" Tyler asked in a strange tone.

"Depends on the story." Liv told him a little curiously.

"The story of Kronos and his three sons," Tyler said and she noticeably tensed, "did I hit the mark or something?"

"Yes, yes you did," Liv said in unusually quiet voice, "in fact; my family is descended from Zeus."

"No kidding?" Tyler asked trying to act like this was news to him, "so that crown thing, it actually exists?"

"Yeah, it does. It has been passed from father to son for centuries, the role of guarding it our coven's sacred duty." Liv told him looking like she was lost in thought.

"So who's guarding it now?" Tyler asked seeing his chance with her distracted.

"My father at…wait, why all the questions?" Liv asked narrowing her eyes at him in suspicion.

"Just curious I guess," Tyler tried to shrug it off but saw that she wasn't buying it, "you know what, I just remembered that Matt asked me to help him with something very tricky. So I guess I'll see you at class."

Tyler high tailed it out of there and Liv became even more suspicious when she saw him exchange a glance with a shaved headed customer. The customer waited a few seconds before paying and leaving.

Julian's hideout, Damon and Peyton's room

9:35 A.M.

"So, are you sure this will work?" Peyton asked as she laid on her bed her stomach exposed.

"I've never done it myself, but I know enough to know that it will work," Sam told the blonde as her hands trailed Peyton's stomach, "there's no definite way to tell what you're having until you can get a sonogram, but this is the closest you can get until we can get you to a real doctor. You sure you want to do this?"

"Yes, I want to know." Peyton said without hesitation.

Sam nodded in understanding before she began chanting. Peyton closed her eyes as she tried to relax and waited for Sam to get done with the spell.

The Warehouse

9:37 A.M.

"Did you really have to shoot me?" Matt grimaced as another wave of pain shot through his arm.

"Lockwood wasn't taking the threat seriously, so I had to something to make him take it seriously. I could have just killed you and taken to torturing one of them," Damon gestured to the ones in cage as he spoke, "but instead I shot you in the shoulder. I gave Tyler a chance to save you; let's hope he doesn't waste it."

"You're so kind." Caroline muttered.

Everyone gave her a look that told her to shut up but the damage was done. Damon walked over to the cage and stared down at the woman he sired with a cold glint in his eyes that was worse than any glare he could muster. Damon smiled a cold, unfriendly smile that sent everyone on edge as they waited to see what he would do. However, his next actions surprised them.

"You think I'm a monster," Damon said as a statement not an accusation, "you blame me for this situation, but I am not to blame. Let me guess, Brooke had a plan to get Peyton out from under Julian's thumb, but you thought that got let me off to easy. So you came up with another plan, a plan to capture me, cause me a little hurt in the process. And if Peyton happened to die because of it, well that was just collateral damage to you. Am right?"

"How'd you know?" Caroline said quietly a little ashamed and the shocked, disapproving looks everyone shot her didn't help.

"Because you are, at your core Blondie, a Vampire just like me. And we Vampires are vengeful and unforgiving creatures," Damon said keeping that cold expression on his face, "you think of me as the villain of the story, but I have saved each and every one of you, from the enemy, from yourselves, and from your own stupid decisions. I never said anything because someone has to play the bad guy and get things done around here, make the hard calls that everyone else is too afraid to make, masking their cowardice as morality. You've wondered what it would be like without me Blondie, well here is the world where you and are on opposite sides."

"Great speech Damon." Xavier said as he and Tyler stepped into view to the surprise of everyone.

"What are you doing here Xavier; I thought I told you to make the call when you got information so I could let Matt go?" Damon asked as he turned around to face the pair.

"We've got the information; the crown is guarded by the girl's father. Not much, but it's a good place to start." Xavier shrugged as he led Tyler into the room.

"Then why didn't you call, why'd you bring wolf-boy here?" Damon asked knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

"Because we are going to keep them for more leverage, all of them." Xavier said as he eyed the ones in the cage.

"That wasn't the plan Xavier." Damon growled as he started to get angry.

"You are so naïve Damon, we need all the leverage we can get. I learned that six months ago when I took a little girl to a farm house on Julian's orders." Xavier said remorselessly and everyone saw Damon tense.

"Six months ago you say?" Damon asked in a suspicious voice.

"Yeah, what's the problem?" Xavier asked not getting what can of worms he had just opened.

The next thing anyone knew, Xavier had been punched by Damon and flew into the wall. Everyone was confused by the way Damon was acting as Damon stalked over Xavier who stood up and looked at Damon like he had lost his mind.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Xavier demanded.

"Cut the crap bolide, I know that six months ago Julian had Sam's daughter taken hostage for leverage against Sam. Now tell me, where's the girl?" Damon demanded hotly.

"I don't know?" Xavier told him honestly.

"Wrong answer." Damon smiled darkly as he spoke in a tone that matched.

Damon grabbed Xavier by his shirt and blurred over to the cage. Everyone was stunned when Damon slammed Xavier back first against the cage. Xavier let out an agonizing scream as the electricity shocked him. After about five seconds, Damon pulled Xavier away from the cage and pulled so they could look into each other's eyes.

"Where is the girl Xavier?" Damon growled menacingly.

"I don't know." Xavier repeated desperately.

"You just need a little more incentive." Damon assured him with a menacing smile.

Damon threw Xavier over his shoulder and Xavier crashed into a wooded crate behind Matt. Xavier went right through it and pain shot through his body as Xavier rolled a few times before he stopped. Damon blurred over and kicked him so he was on his back before leaning down and wrapping his hand around Xavier's throat. Not tight enough to break his neck or cause suffocation, but enough to make it harder to breath.

"Where is she?!" Damon shouted at him.

"I don't know Julian moves her every two or three weeks." Xavier gasped out against Damon's hand.

"Where?" Damon growled.

"I don't know, no one does. Julian is the one that moves here and he always has the same guards move to the new location." Xavier gasped out.

"Thanks, now that wasn't so hard was it?" Damon asked with a sarcastic smile before snapping Xavier's neck.

Damon stood up and looked over at his stunned audience. Smothering a smile, Damon walked over and ripped off the ropes around Matt's arms and legs. As Tyler went over to help Matt stand up, Damon walked over to the desk and typed in a code. The Vampires heard the buzzing of electricity around the bares fade and Damon walked over and pulled the door open.

"okay, now I don't have a lot of time, so listen," Damon told them once they were out of the cage, "this needs to look like a rescue, so Ric I need you to snap my neck."

"What!" Alaric exclaimed everyone stunned by the suggestion.

"I know that you guys want to help me, but the best way for you do that is for you to help Brooke get Peyton out of Julian's crosshairs. In the meantime, I need to be able to protect Peyton, in order to do that this needs to look convincing. So snap my damn neck Ric!" Damon growled at his best friend.

After a moment of hesitation, Alaric put both hands on Damon's neck and twisted. After the sound of Damon' neck snapping echoed through the room, Alaric let go and Damon's limp body fell to the floor.

Julian's hideout

12:08 P.M.

"So let me get this straight: Your friends burst into the warehouse without you noticing, kill Xavier, snap your neck, and rescue Matt Donavan and Tyler Lockwood?" Julian asked rubbing his forehead to sooth the headache he felt coming on.

"That about sums it up." Damon nodded.

"How did you not notice them on the cameras?" Julian asked suspicious.

"I was in the middle of an interrogation; you know how excited I get about interrogating someone. And I have never liked Matt Donavan." Damon pointed out.

"Still, why did they leave you there after snapping your neck?" Julian narrowed his eyes at Damon in suspicion.

"If I had to guess, they know that Peyton has an expiration date if I'm not here." Damon said stonily.

"Fair point," Julian nodded his suspicions settled for the moment, "did Xavier or Tyler tell you anything before this happened?"

"No, but it wasn't a total loss." Damon told him causing Julian to look at him in confusion.

"It wasn't?" Julian asked his suspicions rearing there head again.

"I've worked with these people for three years, I know how they operate. Xavier would have only brought Tyler to the warehouse if wolf-boy had gotten something out of Liv. Now he's going to tell the others and we won't need to look for the crown at all. We only need to watch them and they'll lead us right to it." Damon told him.

"Excellent," Julian smirked darkly before turning his attention back to Damon, "you are dismissed."

Damon nodded before turning around and making his way out of the room. He walked down the long hallway until he reached his and Peyton's room. Opening the door, Damon saw that his wife was sitting at the computer desk, humming as she searched up something on the computer. Smiling softly at the image he had come to so many nights in Tree Hill, Damon closed the door and alerted Peyton to his presence.

"Hey, how'd it go?" Peyton asked with slight apprehension entering her voice.

"Well, I tortured a guy I don't really like, held three people I care about and one I don't hostage, killed Xavier, and found something out about Sam's daughter." Damon said as he reached the desk.

"Really, what'd you find out?" Peyton eager for the information.

"That apparently Julian moves her every two or three weeks and he always uses the same guards when he does," Damon told before noticing how she looked a little hungry, "hey, you want me to grab you something to eat?"

"Well now that you mention it, I could go for some strawberry ice cream," Peyton requested and Damon looked at her like she had lost her mind, "what?"

"You hate strawberry ice cream." Damon reminded her.

"Not today I don't." Peyton said with a coy smile and Damon laughed.

"I'll see what I can do." Damon assured her before turning around and walked over to the door.

"Damon, I learned something today, about the baby," Peyton caressed her stomach lovingly and Damon stopped his hand inches from the door, "I think it's a girl."

A girl. Damon had already loved his child; even from the moment that Peyton had told him she was pregnant despite his shock. However, he had never really considered whether it was a boy or girl. However now that he pictured it…a little angel with her mother's blonde curly hair and his blue eyes. With his grin and Peyton's artistic ability and love for music. His little princess.

"Damon…is that…are you okay?" Peyton asked uncertainly as he remained silent and frozen like a statue for several seconds.

"Can I say something that will probably sound strange in our current circumstances?" Damon asked her in a rare gentle tone.

"Sure, what is it?" Peyton asked as she sat up straighter.

"I'm happy." Damon said a small smile making its way onto his lips before he walked out the door in search of ice cream.

 **So, what do you guys think? Please leave a review or PM me with any thoughts or comments you may have.**


	6. Fathers, brothers, and sons

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

 **To avoid any confusion, I changed my user name to** _ **Stand with Ward and Salvatore**_ **. I've also changed the story into an official crossover with One Tree Hill, because following this chapter, a lot more One Tree Hill Characters will be coming in. If you haven't watched One Tree Hill, you don't really have to but it would probably explain a bit about the characters.**

Julian's base, September 15th

7:17 A.M.

"Now, I believe you said your friends would lead us to the crown? So then why haven't they?!" Julian exploded at Damon as he slammed his fist down on the desk in front of him.

"Obviously, it's taking more time than I anticipated. I forget in my assessment that half the people in this group are teenagers." Damon attempted to pacify his enemy.

"Yes, it is taking too long, so I've taken matters into my own hands." Julian told him as he stood and turned away from Damon.

"What did you do?" Damon asked with a feeling of dread.

"Nothing too terrible…yet." Julian smirked.

Brooke's house

7:23 A.M.

"That's for letting me stay here." Stefan told Brooke as she poured herself some juice.

"We all need to stick together until this situation is dealt with and your family is safe," Brooke paused to take a drink before she continued, "any more leads on Liv's father?"

"No yet. Bonnie's getting in contact with her cousin and Enzo's gone out of town to research some underground leads that might help, but nothing so far." Stefan told in frustration as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Uh, guys we got mail." Luna told them in an unnerved tone as she walked into the kitchen holding a card.

"What's it say?" Brooke asked as Stefan took the card from Luna and opened it.

"Dear Luna, Stefan, and Brooke," Stefan began and everyone started to get a bad feeling in the pit of their stomachs, "You are hereby invited to the Julian Baker Charity benefit Ball. It starts at Seven P.M. tonight and the address is on the card, so we hope to see you there."

"What, does he think we're just going to walk right into a trap?" Brooke scoffed.

"P.S.," Stefan continued as if Brooke hadn't interrupted, "if you do not attend, then the survival of Peyton Sawyer and her child cannot be guaranteed."

"Oh he did not just go there!" Luna hissed practically simmering with rage.

"He's a dead man the moment I get my hands on him." Brooke growled

"So I think we know what we're doing tonight." Stefan said in a cool voice as he placed the card on the table.

Julian's hideout

7:27 A.M.

"You son of a bitch!" Damon growled as he lifted Julian up by his throat and slammed him against the wall.

"Relax, I'm not gonna kill her. She my best leverage against you after all." Julian reminded him seemingly unconcern about Damon's violent reaction.

"I should kill you right now." Damon snarled as his fingers began digging into Julian's throat.

"Go ahead," Julian said his voice a little gruffer than normal because of the pain, "then Sam will never see her daughter again. If anything is to happen to me, I have ordered the ones who guard little Brooke to kill the girl."

"You're sick." Damon snarled wanting nothing more than to rip his head off with his bare hands.

"No, just highly motivated. So go ahead, kill me. When you do, Sam and Peyton will never stop hating you." Julian taunted him.

Damon growled, wanting nothing more than to kill him. If this was fifteen years ago, he would have, but he was not that man anymore. The existence of his child had awakened a change in him, for the first time since he had become a Vampire he was putting the self-interest of someone else ahead of himself. He couldn't put Sam's daughter at risk.

"Hiding behind a child…you're a coward." Damon told him coldly as he removed his hands from Julian's throat and the Witch slumped against the wall.

"Who's more cowardly, the one too afraid to put his loved ones at risk or the one who takes measures to protect himself?" Julian asked with a sadistic grin as he massaged his throat.

"Why do you want them there anyway?" Damon demanded trying to control his temper.

Brooke's house

12: 17 P.M.

"So why does Brooke have a suit my size?" Stefan asked Luna as she helped him button the tux.

"It was her father's, he wore it himself when he was about your age, your _biological_ age Stefan." Luna rolled her eyes at her brother's incredulous look.

"So, why does Julian want us there?" Stefan asked not seeing the logic in this.

"Who knows, probably to trap us and then use us in some diabolical scheme to torment our brother. Usually is with that Witch bastard," Luna said spitefully as she finished buttoning Stefan's tux and stepped back to admire her work, "so how does it feel?"

"It feels pretty good actually," Stefan said surprised at how well it fit, "I don't understand Julian's endgame. Why is he going through all this over a girl that was never even his in the first place?"

"I forgot that you've never officially met Peyton. To understand you would have to know her." Luna told him as her brother looked at her curiously.

"Then tell me about her, tell me about the mother of Damon's child." Stefan asked her and Luna was quiet for a moment as she thought of how to describe their sister-in-law to him.

"If there ever was such a thing as a goddess, no woman was more like one than Peyton Sawyer," Luna began after a moment a wistful look in her eyes as she recalled fond memories, "Whenever she walked into a room, every man's head turned and their eyes followed her every move. To fall in love with her, all you had to do was sit down and have a conversation with her and you were done for. I don't think's anyone on this earth who wouldn't fall in love with her, she's just that amazing. I only arrived in Tree Hill a day after Damon and he was already halfway in love with her. She's kind, but was always a little lonely. I think that's what drew them together at first, they just two broken, lonely people who wanted someone to love them. Out of all the humans I have met, she is the only truly good one. You could search for decades and you wouldn't find someone as good as her."

"Damon doesn't let people in easily." Stefan noted skeptically not believing that Damon had fallen for Peyton that quickly.

"Peyton was the exception. And have you forgotten our human lives so easily?" Luna asked pointedly.

"I haven't forgotten anything." Stefan told her as he began to think back.

 _The Salvatore mansion, September 18_ _th_ _, 1855_

 _8:16 A.M._

 _Eight year old Stefan tried to tie the bowtie himself but was having difficulty. What was a normally difficult task was now nearly impossible for the young boy, as today was his mother's funeral. The more he tried not to think about, the more he felt like crying. As he had given up on tying it, he heard someone step into the room. Too soft for his father, but too load for Luna or one of the maids. Stefan knew it was his brother before Damon even spoke._

" _How are you holding up little brother?" Damon, who had just turned fifteen, asked as he stepped into view._

" _Father will not cry, so I will not cry." Stefan said vaguely in response as he once again._

" _Father is incapable of human emotion," Damon told him as he knelt down and began to tie the bowtie for his brother, "you on the other hand, are eight so you may cry if you please."_

 _The two of them heard someone walk into the room and they looked up to see their five year old sister walk into the room in a white dress. The little blonde haired Girl sniffed as she attempted to tie her shoes, but tying her shoes had always been difficult for her on the best day. Once Stefan had a ready bowtie, Damon walked over to his sister and helped her tie her shoes._

" _Now both of you come here," Damon waited until both of his siblings stood in front of him before placing an arm around both of them and continuing, "Things will be different now that mother is gone, but this will change nothing between the three of us. No matter what happens, I will always be here for you both."_

"Stefan, you okay?" Luna began to get concerned after he remained silent for several seconds.

"Fine, just…remembering," Stefan assured her as he shook his head to clear it off memories long past, "so, what do you think Julian's end game is."

"Once he gets what he wants, he'll probably kill us," Luna said after a moment of thought, "then he'll probably kill Peyton out of spite, and he'll do it in front of Damon. He'll back Damon watch as the light leaves her eyes and then, once Damon has crumbled to the pits of despair, only then will he kill our brother."

"So Julian's basically a Witch version of Klaus then." Stefan muttered but Luna still heard him thanks to her Vampire hearing.

"I thought so to when Damon first told me about Klaus, but he disagreed," Luna told him and Stefan looked at her confused, "the way Damon sees it, Klaus had a method to his madness and despite all his faults, still had a bit of humanity left in him. Julian has no shred of humanity left; he never had any to start with. Julian is a man who just wants to watch the world burn."

Julian's base, Damon and Peyton's room

3:27 P.M.

"So why do I have to go to this thing?" Peyton asked Sam as the Witch helped her get ready.

"Because Julian said so and what Julian wants, Julian gets." Sam said with more than a little bitterness.

"And anyone who gets in his way is removed." Peyton said grimly.

On the other side of the base, Julian was in getting fitted for a suit as Damon sat back. Julian smirked silently at Damon's displeasure; the Vampire had practically been simmering with rage after Julian had told him why he was throwing this party and why his family's attendance was mandatory. Oh how he loved tormenting Damon Salvatore, Julian mused gleefully.

"So, are you looking forward to the party?" Julian asks mockingly.

"You know, it's not every day that someone asks me to do something like this to my own brother." Damon said on the verge of snapping.

"But I'm not asking, I'm telling," Julian said all glee gone from his voice, "you will do this, or I will kill Peyton. Do we understand each other?"

"Yes." Damon growled through grinding teeth.

"Yes what?" Julian asked tauntingly knowing Damon would absolutely hate this.

"Yes…master." Damon growled.

"That's a good soldier." Julian smiled and clapped Damon on the shoulder like they were friends.

It took every last ounce of Damon's self-control not to snap Julian's neck. Julian walked out of the room and Damon waited until he was about of hearing range until he growled in rage and punched the wall. His fist punched a hole clean into the wall.

Brooke's house

6:05 P.M.

"Anyone home?" Caroline pounded her fist on the front door as Elena and Alaric stood behind her.

"Caroline, they're obviously not home." Alaric pointed out.

"Yeah, which makes me a little suspicious. They've called us with any news they had at five every day, even when there was no news. Now they don't and they're not home? Tell me that doesn't send a warning bell through your head!" Caroline shouted whirling around to face them.

"…She may have a point." Elena admitted as she turned to face Alaric.

"Move aside." Alaric ordered after some consideration.

As soon as Caroline moved, Alaric walked over and kicked the door in. The three Vampires entered the house, immediately realizing that no one was there by the quietness of the house. The three of them made their way to the kitchen, searching for anything amiss. As they did, Alaric noticed a fancy card on the table and picked it up and opened it. As he read it, Caroline and Elena noticed him pale and his jaw drop as he adopted a horrified expression.

"I think I know where they are, or where they're headed." Alaric said in a soft voice as he handed them the card.

A mansion near Mystic Falls

6:55 P.M.

"Nice place." Stefan noted dryly as he and the two women walked up to the rather large mansion.

"Julian always has liked showing off." Brooke smiled sarcastically as she smoothed down her green dress.

"Well, let's find out what we're here for shall we?" Luna suggested looking stunning in her blood-red dress.

"Names?" The bouncer, human by the unaware look of him, asked once they reached the front.

"Hi, I'm Brooke Davis and these are my friends Stefan and Luna Salvatore. We should be on the VIP list." Brooke said with her most charming smile.

The bouncer, looking a little flustered, ran a hand through his black hair and looked at said list. It was impossible to tell what he saw behind those shade guarded eyes of his, but apparently he found what he was looking for. Nodding, he stepped aside so they could enter. Smiling seductively Brooke walked passed him with the Salvatore siblings following her.

"What was that about?" Stefan asked once her smile had dropped from her face.

"I find that charming the weak willed gives you a certain advantage." Brooke explained as they moved through the crowd of people.

"I learned from the best."

The voice made the trio freeze and turn towards the source. Sam stood there, wearing a knee length black dress that wasn't all that alluring, but was very classy. Brooke stood frozen, staring at the closest thing she has ever had to a daughter before she regained herself and lunged towards her. Brooke wrapped her former foster daughter in a bear hug which Sam eager returned. The two women embraced for several moments as Luna smiled affectionately while Stefan looked on, curious about the relationship between the two Witches. After several more moments, the two released each other.

"I've wanted to do that since I saw you in that forest," Brooke said brokenly as her hands roamed Sam's face as if Sam would disappear at any moment, "you've grown up so much. Please Sam, what does Julian have on you?"

"The same thing he has on Damon and Peyton." Sam said and Brooke didn't seem to get it but Stefan understood.

"Your child, Julian has your child." Stefan spoke in realization and Sam nodded tearfully.

"Sam?" Brooke gasped in shock and Sam looked away.

"Five years ago, I got involved with a married man, not knowing he was married, and I ended up pregnant. I didn't tell the father and I raised her, my daughter Brooke Haley Walker, by myself for four years. Six months ago I finally got enough courage to tell you and was on my way to your house when Julian grabbed her." Sam explained about to break down.

"Sam." Brooke said softly before bringing her daughter in for a hug.

Sam returned the hug as she buried her head in Brooke's shoulder. Brooke stroked Sam's hair as the younger woman took some deep breaths to calm down. Once the younger woman had calmed down, the two women separated and turned towards the Salvatores. Luna walked over and captured the Witch in a warm embrace.

"Hey Sami, how's it going?" Luna whispered in the younger woman's ear.

"A hell of a lot better once I have my daughter back." Sam whispered back.

"And you will," Luna promised as she let go and turned around to face Stefan, "Sam, this is my brother Stefan. Stefan, this is Samantha Walker, she was Brooke's foster daughter fifteen years ago when Damon and I arrived in Tree Hill."

"I've heard a lot about you." Sam told Stefan as the Vampire took her hand.

"All bad I take it?" Stefan asked knowing off his siblings' opinion of him at the time.

"There were some good." Sam told him as they dropped hands.

"Well, isn't this a pretty picture?"

The four of them turned to see a fuming Caroline walk over with a sheepish Elena and Alaric trailing behind her. Caroline was dressed in a sparkly blue dress and Elena was dressed in a black, elegant dress, both which were highly familiar to Luna, while Alaric was dressed in a simple yet classy Tux.

"So know we're associating with the enemy?" Caroline hissed at them once she reached them.

"Sam is not the enemy," Luna said in an icy voice, "she's a victim of Julian's dark web, someone who's being forced to work for him under blackmail, just like my brother."

"Why didn't you guys call us when you got the card?" Alaric demanded hoping to defuse the situation before it got out of hand.

"Because it didn't involve you," Brooke said in a firm voice as the three Vampires looked at her with expressions that ranged from surprised to hurt, "it was addressed to Stefan, Luna, and me, no one else. You are all just tagging along on this venture; this whole thing doesn't involve you. My best friend, Stefan and Luna's brother, My Daughter! This is our mission and if we feel like keeping information from you guys, then we'll keep as much as damn well please!"

"Damon is my best friend." Alaric reminded her with a bit of an edge to his voice.

"Okay, he has reason to be here," Luna stepped in before this could get into an argument that would draw attention to them, "Elena has reason to be here, but Blondie here doesn't and she can't be trusted."

"Excuse me?" Blondie herself asked offended.

"You were going in with some half-baked plan that was born out of a vendetta that put Peyton and my unborn niece or nephew at risk, and you were willing to brush them off as collateral damage. You can't be trusted where my family's safety is concerned." Luna told her coldly.

"Stefan, are you just gonna let her talk to me like that?" Caroline looked to her best friend for support.

"I'll say something to her when she says something I disagree with." Stefan coolly and Caroline recoiled like he'd slapped her.

If one good thing came out of this, it was that Stefan and Luna were finally on the same side, Damon mused from where he stood watching them. Damon was on the second floor balcony, watching his friends and family squabble like children. Elena was the first one to notice him watching and everything else faded away as they locked eyes. For one breathtaking moment, it was just them as everyone else seemed to disappear and Damon fought the urge to jump over the railing, take her in his arms and kiss her like he had wanted to do for the last few months. Then, the moment ended when he heard a pair of high heels click on the tiled floor behind him. Damon turned around and suddenly he couldn't breathe.

Peyton was there, dressed in the most stunning white silk dress that he had ever seen. It went down to her knees and left her arms bare but her shoulders and cleavage were completely covered. Her blonde, shoulder length hair was curled in a way that reminded Damon a little of the photos he had seen of her as a teenager and her green eyes sparkled with mischievousness and a little anxiety. There was no makeup on her face, she had no need for that, never had, because she already looked like an angel.

"It's not too much is it, Sam didn't overdo it?" Peyton asked with some of the insecurity she had always felt visible in her voice.

"No, no it's not too much. You look perfect." Damon told her softly his eyes never leaving her.

The rest of the group had spotted Damon and they were now watching him and Peyton. Elena's heart clenched painfully as she saw Damon look at the blonde beauty with a look on his face he had only ever given her. Caroline reached over and took Elena's hand before she gave it a comforting squeeze. Alaric, who had long been curious about the woman who had captured his best friend's heart so long ago, studied the woman in white intently.

"So that's Peyton Sawyer…I see why Damon was so taken with her." Alaric admitted.

"When you told me that she was a goddess, I thought you were just speaking metaphorically." Stefan told his sister who made a sound that was mix between a laugh and a sob.

"Her beauty is only half her charm." Luna said in a choked voice before Stefan took her in his arms and she buried her face in his chest.

"She's always been beautiful, but it's her heart that makes more than that," Brooke said as she stared at her best friend for the first time in fifteen years, "it's her heart that makes her a goddess among women."

"Speaking of gods, it looks like the Antichrist has finally made his appearance." Sam said darkly as she looked up the spiral staircase.

Everyone followed her gaze to see Julian walking down the staircase. Elena, Caroline, and Alaric, who had never before laid eyes on the Witch, watched the man intently as he smirked maliciously at them. The others however, having met Julian at least once before, all glared at the man with pure hate. The glares seemed to have no effect on him as Julian simply walked over to the stage. He walked onto the stage, picked up a microphone and he held it up towards him as he turned to address the crowd.

"Excuse me; may I have everyone's attention?" He asked and everyone looked up towards the stage as Julian plastered a fake, million dollar smile on his face, "hello everyone, my name is Julian Baker. I would like to thank you all for coming to my ball; you know it really warms my heart to know that people still care."

Luna and Brooke scoffed in sync as the others gave looks of disbelief. The words 'warm' and 'heart' were not world they usually associated with Julian. As Damon and Peyton stepped of the spiral staircase, for a moment a glimmer of triumph entered Julian's eyes but as quick as it came it was gone.

"And now I would like to announce, what I'm sure you're all wondering, the reason for this charity benefit. You see the couple by the stairs," Julian gestured to The Salvatores and every eye in the room turned to them, "allow me to introduce my dear friend Damon Salvatore and his wife Peyton. You see, they recently learned that they were expecting their first child, a little girl in fact. Now, I take care of my friends, so every cent you donate here tonight goes towards Virginia state hospitals, provided that all money donated goes towards the well fare of pregnant mothers. After all, we must take care of our children. You never know when fate might just…snatch them away from you. So, for the future of our children, donate your hearts out!"

As everyone else applauded, those who knew what Julian was really like caught the veiled threat. Peyton clutched Damon's arm in fear like her life depended on it as he took her and squeezed back reassuringly. It was Damon's reaction that surprised everyone. While everyone expected him to be glaring up at Julian hatefully, instead he had adopted a blank expression none of them had ever seen on his face before.

"Expected Damon to go into full on serial mode." Caroline muttered to the group.

"A few weeks ago, I would've thought the same," Sam told them as she watched her surrogate aunt and uncle, "but since he's been here…I don't know how to describe it, he's just been different lately."

"When you have a child…it changes you, sometimes in ways you don't expect." Brooke said as she put her arm lovingly around Sam.

"Not everyone." Stefan said darkly as he thought back.

 _The Salvatore Mansion, October 15_ _th_ _, 1887_

 _10:17 A.M._

 _Nine year old Stefan was walking down the hall, looking for his brother when he heard a slamming sound, like something had been thrown against the wall. Childish curiosity overtaking him, Stefan walked towards the room where he believed the sound had come from. Opening the door ever so slightly, Stefan took a peek inside. He was shocked and horrified by what he saw._

 _His brother was on the floor, groaning in pain as their father stood over him. Giuseppe sneered at Damon before kicking him in the stomach , causing Damon to cry out in pain. Judging by the bruises and cuts on Damon's face, this had been going on for a while. Stefan wanted to close the door, to run and forget this awful scene. But he couldn't move, he was frozen in shock and horror._

" _You will not fail me again, is that understood_ _ **son**_ _?" Giuseppe spat the word like it was a curse._

" _Yes." Damon spat back, no sign of any of the pain he was doubt feeling._

 _Finally regaining control of himself, Stefan turned and fled the scene as fast as he could as his father turned towards the door._

"Well, I see there are some invited guests." Damon drawled eying Alaric, Elena, and Caroline as he and Peyton approached the group.

"A little compulsion goes a long way." Alaric said dryly as he looked at his friend with a slight grin.

"Glad to you enjoying the perks of being a Vampire," Damon smiled at his best friend before the two pulled each other into a giant bear hug, "good to see under less dramatic circumstances Ric."

"You to Damon." Ric said happy to see best friend without having to fight against him.

"P. Sawyer." Brooke said in a voice on the verge of cracking as she stood in front of her best friend for the first time in fifteen years.

"I don't look too bad for a woman in her late thirties huh?" Peyton quipped and Brooke laughed tearfully because it just such a Peyton thing to say.

"It's good to see you Peyton." Luna smiled happy to see the woman alive.

"You to Luna," Peyton smiled at her sister in law before her gaze flickered to Stefan, "you were at my house in the prison Dimension."

"Yeah, we've never officially met. I'm Stefan, I guess we're in-laws." Stefan said as he took Peyton's hand like the southern gentlemen he was raised as, "it's nice to finally meet the woman who captured my brother's heart."

"It's nice to meet you Stefan, I was happy to hear that you and Damon had patched things up." Peyton smiled at the only Salvatore she hadn't met.

"It took a while, but the two of us sorted out our issues after duking it out a few times." Damon quipped good naturally and the entire Salvatore family chuckled.

"I see why you're so taken with this girl buddy," Alaric said before holding his hand out to Peyton, "I'm Alaric Saltzman, I've heard a lot of good things about you."

"Damon's told me a lot about you, it's nice to finally meet you." Peyton smiled at him as she attempted to ignore the unfriendly gaze of the brunette.

Elena knew she was being rude by the way she was almost glaring at Peyton, but she couldn't help it. Elena didn't like to think of herself as a petty person, but she was a Vampire so she was naturally possessive. Plus, her jealousy was heightened which only seemed to be making her act more like a bitch. If this was how Damon had felt watching her with Stefan, Elena wasn't sure how Stefan was still alive considering she wanted to throttle Peyton and hadn't even spoken to the blonde angle beside Damon.

"You must be Elena," The pregnant blonde said in a clipped tone as the two women lock eyes and the cheerful atmosphere of the group all but evaporates, "Damon's told me a lot about you."

"Well that's funny, because he hasn't told me a damn thing about you." Elena sneered as she began to channel her inner Katherine.

"Ladies, break it up." Damon told them his expression blank again save for the disapproving look in his eyes.

"Hey talk to her, I'm pregnant and hormonal." Peyton defended herself shooting her husband a glare which had no effect on him.

"And she's a Vampire expiring heightened jealous and can you blame her. I mean, look at me?" Damon quipped and some of the tension leaves as everyone laughs, "Now before this turns into a cat fight, take a walk with me little brother."

Without waiting for a response, Damon turned and walked away from the group. Casting a curious glance towards the others, Stefan nevertheless followed his older brother. The two brothers walked through the crowd, walking so far that even those with Vampire would be able to hear them over the muttering of the crowd. Damon and Stefan stopped by a second stair case, not a spiral like the one Damon and Peyton had come down, and less obvious as well.

"You're going to have to follow me up the stairs Stef." Damon said softly.

"And why would I do that?" Stefan asked on his guard sensing that they getting to the reason why he was there.

Damon gestured with his head to look up them stair and, when he did, Stefan was shocked and horrified. Ivy was up there, looking terrified as one of Julian's goons held her hands behind her back. Ivy's were wide and terrified while the goon smirked down at him maliciously. Stefan turned back to Damon who stared back at him remorsefully.

"How'd they find her?" Stefan demanded angrily, anger not directed at his brother but those using him.

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to find someone when they know what they're looking for. Did you think that Julian wouldn't be able to find your little home in Savannah?" Damon asked the blank expression back on his face.

Stefan growled but let his brother lead him up the stairs.

Back with the group, everything had turned awkward again as Peyton and Elena had an intense stare down. Everyone was just standing there unsure of what to do to break the tension. Finally, Luna decided to say the first thing that popped into her head.

"So…what was Julian saying about me getting a niece?" Luna asked as she looked at Peyton with a raised eyebrow that reminded everyone so much of the eldest Salvatore that it was scary.

"Sam did a spell that is supposed to tell me the gender of my baby." Peyton said smiling as she lovingly patted her stomach.

"Ah, you did that spell?" Brooke cooed as she smiled at Sam with a mother's pride.

"I had a good teacher." Sam smiled slightly at her mother.

"So it's a girl?" Alaric asked as everyone looked at the two Witches and Peyton curiously.

"It's not one-hundred percent accurate, but it's the closest we'll get to a sonogram until we get out of here." Sam explains.

"Hey uh, did anyone see where Damon and Stefan went?" Caroline, who had been looking for the brothers, realized that they were not on the dance floor.

On the second floor, Damon and Julian's goon led Stefan and the terrified Ivy towards a room at the end of the house. Damon opened the door to reveal Julian standing inside with a cruel smirk. Also inside the room was a wooden chair and a table with various items on it such as rope, knives, a long sword, and there was a flaming fire place in the corner. Stefan had a very bade feeling as the four of them walked into the room and Damon shut the door behind them. This was not helped by Julian and the goon's gleeful smile and Damon's expression becoming less blank and more pained.

"You must be Stefan; it's nice to finally meet you! And this must be Ivy!" Julian said jovially as he walked over to the group.

"And you're the monster that's forcing my brother to work for him." Stefan sneering while Ivy looked stunned at this information.

"Oh Damon and I get along all right, isn't that right Damon?" Julian looked over at the dark haired Vampire as though he expected Damon to agree.

"Go to hell." Damon growled.

"I'll meet you there but first, here's how this is going to work: you're going to do exactly as I say, or my friend over there can make things very unpleasant for Ivy. Understand?" Julian smiled as Stefan nodded shortly, "good, now go sit in the chair."

Glowering at Julian, Stefan walked over to the chair and sat down in it. Julian nodded at Damon who walked over to the table and picked the rope up. As he did, he hissed in pain as his skin started to burn. Realizing it was Vervain rope, Stefan's eyes widened in horror. Not for fear for himself, but at what Julian was making his brother do to himself.

"Look, I'll tell you whatever you want, but don't do this to him." Stefan all but begged Julian.

"Even if I did believe you, this is too entertaining." Julian smiled sadistically as Damon walked over to Stefan's chair.

"I'm sorry about this." Damon grunted in pain as he began to tie the Vervain rope around Stefan arms and the arm rests.

"Not your fault." Stefan grunted as the rope began to burn his skin.

"Enough talk; go get the sword Damon," Julian ordered once the rope was tied as he himself walked over to the chair, "now, what did Tyler Lockwood tell you?"

"Don't tell him anything Stefan." Damon warned as he picked up the sword.

"Silence!" Julian snarled as he glared at Damon.

"You have my service, not my loyalty," Damon reminded him coolly as he looked back at his brother, "you know why he wants that information? So he can unleash hell on earth. No matter what happens, don't say anything."

"Well then if that's how you feel, I have a new game plan," Julian smiled in a way that sent shivers down the brothers' spines, "Damon, you're going to torture him regardless of his answer."

"What?" Ivy asked in horror as Damon and Stefan locked gazes with each other.

"Just do what you have to do Damon," Stefan told his brother ignoring Julian; "you need to protect your family."

"You are my family." Damon reminded him not moving a muscle.

"No I'm not…because if I was I wouldn't have let you stop me that day." Stefan told him and both Salvatores remembered that day clearly.

 _The Salvatore Mansion, August 11_ _th_ _, 1859_

 _Eleven year old Stefan gently opened the doors to his father's bedroom. His father laid in bed, sleeping, unaware of what Stefan was about to do. The young boy walked inside the room, his heart racing in his chest as he thought of what he was about to do. Hands trembling, he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his older brother's pistol._

 _Ever since that day two years ago, Stefan had been forced to see things differently. Injuries that his brother explain away evasively, Damon's absence at meals, the way Damon would always seem to disappear into his room for days after he and father had a disagreement.  
Luna seem to buy the excuses father gave her, but Stefan no longer could after the day he saw father beating Damon. Stefan finally decided to do something about it: he had told all the maids they had the day off and had snuck into Damon's room and managed to steal the pistol. It was time for him to stand up for his family._

 _Stefan quietly walked to the edge of his father's bed and aimed the pistol at Giuseppe's head. Stefan wanted to pull the trigger, he was going to…so why couldn't he pull the trigger? His father was a monster, he deserved to be killed for what he was doing to Damon. Yet Stefan couldn't seem to pull the trigger that would end the monster in human skin's life, a hand reached out and grabbed Stefan's hand that was holding the gun. Startle, Stefan turned to see that the hand belonged to his brother._

 _Damon's face was set in stony anger and disapproval as he glowered at his brother. Damon easily wrestled the pistol out of Stefan's hand and pointed to the door. Feeling a sense of relief that he didn't quite understand, Stefan fled the room. As he exited, he looked back and saw Damon standing where he had moments before, gazing at their father. His expression was one of someone who was thinking of something before Damon turned and followed him out the door._

"Why didn't you let me do it. I wanted to kill for you Damon, I know what he did to you." Stefan told his expressionless brother.

"Sile-" the goon began only for Julian to hold up his hand.

"Let's see where this goes, this is getting interesting." Julian said with gleeful enjoyment in his eyes.

"I stopped you for you Stefan," Damon said as if Julian and his goon hadn't spoken, "if our father I had died, I would've gone down for it. Where did that leave you and Luna? No one would want the siblings of the man who killed his father, I protected you from a life of poverty Stefan. It's why I never killed him; I wasn't going to drag you two down with me."

"You were protecting me." Stefan said softly his mind trying to come to grips with it.

"It's all I've ever tried to do." Damon said earnestly.

"Okay this just got boring. Get on with it Damon!" Julian growled beginning to get irritated.

Eyes filled with remorse and self-loathing, Damon slowly lifted up the sword. Slowly, as if he couldn't move his arms any faster, he started driving the sword into Stefan's stomach. Stefan stifles a pain groan, not wanting his brother to feel guiltier as Damon twists the sword. Ivy watched this in horror while Julian smirked in satisfaction.

"Please, you're going to kill him!" She pleads with Julian.

"You really have no idea do you? No idea what we are, no idea what Stefan is. Oh, this just makes everything better." Julian chuckles sadistically.

"What are you talking about?" Ivy asked almost fearful of the answer.

"Stefan is a Vampire, has been for over a century." Julian informs her and she stars at him stunned by the answer.

Back on the dance floor, none of them could find either Salvatore brother. They met back up at a quiet corner of the dance floor where they could talk.

"So, do you know anything about this Sam?" Caroline accused without actually accusing causing Broke and Luna to glare at her.

"No, I don't. I'm not in the inner circle. Any orders that Julian gives Damon are usually on the hush-hush." Sam met Caroline's glare with a cool stare.

"Damon's not a dog; he only follows Julian's orders because he's protecting you." Elena said irritably.

"Really, he's not a dog? Because that's not what you seemed to think a year ago." Peyton said with a false sugar-sweet tone and a mocking smile.

"What are you talking about?" Elena demanded a slight edge to her voice.

"The fact that he was basically your go to guy for the first two years you knew him when Stefan wouldn't give you what you wanted, but otherwise you couldn't be bothered with him." Peyton snapped the others starting to back up from the impending cat fight.

"That is not what happened." Elena denied to which Peyton scoffed.

"Nothing he did was ever good enough for you. You called his love for you a _problem_. You almost didn't let him into his own house." Peyton pointed out coldly and Elena winced at the truth to those statements.

"He was the villain back then; off course she had reservations about inviting him in!" Caroline couldn't help but pip up.

"Was he the villain, or was he only the villain because that was how you all saw him?" Peyton challenged the group who as one seemed to shift nervously.

"He used me as a human blood bag, he ripped Bonnie's throat out, and he tried to turn Elena into a Vampire!" Caroline listed angrily.

"And Stefan isn't called the Ripper because it's catchy, Elena went off on a killing spree when she had her humanity off, Alaric was turned into a serial killer, and you tried to enact a plan that would've left me and my baby as collateral damage," Peyton said coolly and Caroline, Elena, and Alaric winced at the reminders, "you have all done bad thing, yet the only one who has there indiscretions held against them is my husband."

"Uh Peyton," Alaric interrupted knowing he was treading on a delicate situation, "I agree with you, but he hasn't exactly made it easy for the others to trust him."

"Everyone already saw him as irredeemable, so why should he have tried to make it easy for them? He was already the villain in their eyes, so why should he have tried to prove he wasn't to a bunch of arrogant children?" Peyton snapped the injustice her husband had faced for three years making her furious.

" _When people see good, they expect good. I don't want to have to live up to anyone's expectations."_ Damon words from so long ago in Denver floated through Elena's head.

"Everyone focus," Luna snapped beginning to get frustrated, "Peyton, I'm angry with their hypocritical attitude towards Damon as well, and I _will_ be having words with them later. But right now, we need to focus on the crisis at hand.

Back in the hidden room, Stefan groaned as Damon pulled a knife out of his arm. Blood had seeped into the white shirt, staining it so it looked blood red. Stefan was weak, but he hadn't give n it, he hadn't told Julian a thing. Julian was streaking his chin thoughtfully when an idea came to him. Neither Salvatore liked the dark grin that spread across his face.

"I obviously can't get the information out of you by torturing, so I'll have to try…other methods." Julian smirked as he glanced over at Ivy.

Julian said something in Latin and waited. Ivy started to breath heavily, but then The Salvatore brothers realized that she actually gasping for breath. Julian's spell had left her unable to breath on her own. Julian then spoke again and Ivy seemed to regain control of her lugs.

"That was simply a demonstration, next time I will kill her. Now tell me Stefan, what did Liv Parker reveal to Tyler Lockwood or I will kill your pretty little girl friend." Julian growled and Stefan knew that he had been backed into a corner.

"For centuries, the crown has been passed down as an object that needs to be protected at all costs. One member of her coven is selected to guard the crown every generation." Stefan reluctantly began to tell him.

"And who is guarding it now?" Julian asked itching for a name.

"Liv's father, we don't know who he is or where he's at. We've been searching for a week and nothing, he's obviously gone to great lengths to hide himself." Stefan told him feeling a sense of satisfaction at Julian's outraged expression.

"No matter, I will find him eventually," Julian dismissed turning away from the Salvatores, "And now, release the girl, she has served her purpose."

The goon released Ivy and The Salvatore brothers felt relief for all of one second before Damon saw Julian's vindictive smirk. Julian raised his hand up and Ivy screamed as her head whipped up as if someone had pulled her hair. Blood began running down from her nose and Damon knew what Julian was about to do.

"Julian, Stefan gave you what you wanted, you don't need to do this." Damon tried to reason with him but Julian would not back down.

"But your brother needs to learn that he cannot beat me and suffering shall be his teacher!" Julian shouted as he made a twirling motion with his raised hand.

Ivy's head twisted to the side with a load snapping sound and Stefan cried out in horror. Damon looked away in dismay as Ivy's body fell to the floor, hating that he couldn't protect his brother from this. Julian smiled in satisfaction before looking back at Stefan, smiling at the angry look on the younger Salvatore's face. Julian chuckled in amusement as Stefan attempted to break out of the ropes to no avail.

"I wouldn't worry so much about her, its Luna I'm worried about." Julian mentioned casually which grabbed both Vampires' attention.

"What are you talking about?" Stefan demanded as several scenarios ran through the brothers' minds.

"Well, let's just say she wound be around to be a thorn in my side much longer." Julian said dark glee in his voice.

Damon and Stefan exchanged a blank before Damon blurred out of the room, almost smashing through the door in his haste to exit. Damon blurred back to the staircase he had led Stefan up, frantically searching the crown of dancers for his sister and almost collapsed to the floor in relief when he spotted her talking with the others. Spotting a flash of light from the fourth floor railing; Damon looked up to see one of Julian's minions aiming a snipper riffle at Luna. Acting fast, Damon blurred down the stairs and in front of Luna literally less that a second before the snipper took the shot. Damon felt a wooden bullet him in the back and just about collapsed onto Luna.

The guest began to panic and run for the exits after the realized that a gunshot had been heard. Luna supported Damon as she lowered him to the floor and everyone surrounded the siblings. As Alaric approaches, Damon reaches out and grabs his arm before pulling the Original close.

"There's a staircase towards the back of the room…go up it and follow the first hallway, there's a door at the very end of it." Damon told him in a raspy voice.

Confused, Alaric spots the staircase and runs towards it as fast as humanly possible. Once he had found the hallway, he blurred down to the door Damon had mentioned and kicked in to find Stefan tied to a chair, Julian and one of his goons standing over him, and a dead girl laying on the floor. Alaric blurred over and snapped the neck of the good before lifted Julian up by the neck. Rage filling him, Alaric starts to crush the mad-Witch's throat.

"Go ahead; kill me because Damon will always hate you for it." Julian says mockingly against Alaric's grip.

"Why would he hate me for killing the psychopath threatening his wife and unborn child?" Alaric asked about to do it anyway.

"Because I have an insurance policy to protect me against him, it's why Damon didn't kill me this morning." Julian taunted.

Alaric growled before releasing the crazy Witch.

The mansion

9:15 P.M.

"Okay, got it!" Luna said victoriously as she pulled the bullet out of her yelping brother.

"Thanks." Damon said as he began to put his tux jacket back on.

"Taking a bullet for me was stupid." Luna scolded him as the others watched in amusement.

"It's what big brothers do Luna, make stupid decision to help their little siblings." Damon told with a grin.

"Tonight was a disaster." Stefan said bitterly and the cheerful mood evaporates.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Julian said as he walked into the room, "I got what I needed and I got to torment Damon by having him torture his brother, sounds like a pretty great evening to me."

"Because you're a psychopath." Peyton spits at him.

"What do you want Julian?" Damon demands as he walks in front of the group and towards Julian, "do you want to kill me, is that what you want? Then do it already and get on with it."

"Damon." Elena gasps in horror as everyone looks at him in horror but he ignores them.

"If you're gonna kill me, then do it already instead of tormenting the people I love. Do you want me to beg, is that what you want? Because I'm begging." Damon told him feeling the emotional strain that he had been under for the last week catch up with him.

"You can't die Damon, not yet at least," Julian walks towards Damon until only an inch separates them, "you cannot die until you have felt the very pits of despair swallow you up. But then again, I'm not in charge here."

Julian walks away as the adults (everyone but Elena and Caroline) all stiffen as the true meaning of his words hit them. Elena and Caroline look around as the others simply stand, frozen in shock and horror.

"What did he mean by that?" Caroline asked not sure she wanted to know.

"What he means Caroline," Damon begins slowly as he turns around, "is that he's not the mastermind we thought he was. This whole time we thought he was the puppet master of this play, but he's really just another puppet and someone else is pulling his strings."

Julian's base, Damon and Peyton's room

11:01 P.M.

Peyton walks out of the bathroom in a nightgown. She sees Damon sitting on the couch, staring at the TV but not really watching it and frowns. Ever since they had gotten back he had just been sitting there not doing anything after changing. Well, that stopped now.

Peyton walked over, picked up the remote and turned off the TV. Damon did not react even as Peyton sat down next to him. He still did not react until Peyton reach over and grabbed his chin gently before making his face turn to her. Peyton's heart nearly broke at the tormented blue eyes that stared back at her but she pressed on.

"Damon…talk to me." Peyton said gently told him.

"I can't." Damon told her his voice full of anguish.

"Yes you can, I'm not Elena Damon. I won't judge you for how you feel. Talk to me, I won't push you away." Peyton told him compassionately.

"I tortured my little brother tonight…maybe Blondie's right, maybe I am an unredeemable monster." Damon confessed allowing himself to be vulnerable with her.

"No, she is not right. You're a good person; you just don't allows make the best choices." Peyton told him compassionately.

"Peyton…I'm not a good person. When the baby is born, you need to leave and get as far from me as possible." Damon told her in a self-loathing tone that would've made Stefan proud.

"Damon when have I ever listened to anyone but me? And you are a good man," Peyton assured him as she took his face in her hands, "you're doing what you have to do in order to protect the people you love, and that is the core of who you are. It's I loved you fifteen years ago, why I love now, why I'll love you when our daughter is born, and why I'll love you every day after that."

Peyton leaned in and kissed her husband for the first time in fifteen years. It was like no time had passed between them at all. Damon forgot about the events of tonight, about the last fifteen years, and even about Elena as he took his wife in his arms.

Brooke's house

11:10 P.M.

"I'm sorry about Ivy Stefan." Luna placed her hand on her older brother's shoulder as they all sat in the living room.

"Elena," Stefan called and his ex looked over at him, "when all this is over and we get Damon back…I need you to do something that you won't want to do."

"What's that?" Elena asked as everyone looked at the Salvatore curiously.

"You need to stay away from my brother." Stefan told her which stunned everyone sitting in the room.

"Excuse me?!" Elena stood up outraged.

"Since he's been back, I've noticed something different about him. I'm not talking about the self-loathing for what he's doing, it's there but that's not what I'm talking about. There's a sense of…peace I'm sensing from him that he never had about him before, like he has direction in his life for the first time." Stefan explained softly.

"I see it to," Luna said and everyone looked over at her, "and I first saw it in the Prison dimension when Peyton told him she was pregnant."

"This baby…it brings out the best in him Elena. And despite the good influence you've had on him, you also bring out every selfish tendency he's ever had. What Damon needs right now isn't you or Peyton, it's this baby. If you really love Damon, then you'll let be for now, let him get used to his impending fatherhood." Stefan said as he looked Elena in the eye with an intense look in his own.

"You can't tell me how to live my life Stefan." Elena told him icily which disappointed Stefan.

"I tried to appeal to your compassion, but let me try it this way then," Stefan stood up and walked over to her and, for the first time, Elena was afraid of the younger Salvatore brother, "Stay away from Damon or you'll wish I'd left you to drown with your parents."

"Are you threatening me?" Elena asked in disbelief as Alaric growled at him.

"I'd threaten anyone I see as a threat to my family's wellbeing…even if that person is you." Stefan told her coldly before walking to his room.

 **So, did the endings surprise you? Did you like Stefan's stance on the triangle, do you agree with him? Did the tension between Elena and Peyton make for some interesting triangle drama? Please review, they inspire me.**


	7. Damon's identity crisis

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

 **Warning:** **Sexual content in the beginning of this chapter.**

 **I'm gonna warn you guys right now that this chapter will feel incomplete. I was going to add more, but I felt like this was a good stopping point. I'm gonna right an epilogue to this chapter soon and I warn you that it will be short. Consider this and next chapter the ending of part one of this story and the chapter after that the second part.**

 _Tree Hill, September 16_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _8:49 A.M._

 _Peyton Sawyer-Salvatore opened her eyes as the sun shined its rays through her windows. She was lying in bed, her naked body wrapped up in sheets, lying next to her husband. Turning on her side, she gazed at her seemingly sleeping husband, feeling a thrill at just the thought of that word. After the death of her last boyfriend, Lucas Scott, in her senior year of high school, Peyton never thought she would find love again. She was not blind, she knew that almost every man in town desired her, but they weren't after a meaningful relationship. But then Damon had come to town, and she had fallen hard, so fast that her feet hadn't even hit the ground._

" _It's rude to star." Damon drawled as he opened his blue eyes before looking over at her, "what are you thinking about?"_

" _You, me, us." Peyton told him, a different kind of thrill shooting through her when Damon shot her a roguish smirk._

" _My favorite subject." Damon told her in a husky voice that made a tingly feeling go through her stomach._

 _Suddenly, Peyton found herself on her back with Damon on top of her, kissing her deeply. Eagerly returning the kiss, Peyton reached around her head and began running her hands though his hair as his lips drifted from her mouth to her neck. Peyton panted as she felt his fangs began to graze her neck but Damon didn't bit. He never bit her until she gave him her blessing, something she just loved him more for._

" _It's okay, go ahead." Peyton told him breathlessly._

 _Damon's fangs pierced the skin of her neck and she moaned in pleasure._

Julian's base, Damon and Peyton's room, September 16th, 2012

7:18 A.M.

Peyton opened her eyes and realized that she was alone in bed. Sitting up, with the sheets covering her naked body, she saw Damon by the couch putting on his leather jacket. Damon looked over and saw her awake, but said nothing. She sat up, the sheets still covering her naked body, as an uncomfortable silence stretched between them.

"So…that happened last night." Peyton said in an uncomfortable voice.

"Yeah, it did," Damon paused before looking at her curiously, "things didn't used to be this hard between us did it?"

"No, but things are different now…you're different," Peyton acknowledges and Damn looks at her surprised, "somethings eating at you, something besides the baby and working for Julian."

"You always could tell when I was upset." Damon told her with a slight grin.

"Tell me Damon. If you can't talk to your wife," Peyton takes off her wedding ring and puts it on the night stand next to her bed, "then there, I'm not your wife. So talk."

"…I love you Peyton Sawyer, and I honestly think I've loved you since the first moment I saw you on that bridge," Damon told her sincerely and Peyton feels her heart sing with joy, "but you died. For all intents and purposes, you died and I didn't know how to go on without you. And then I met Elena and I fell in love again. I didn't mean to, I didn't expect it and it wasn't immediately. I fell in love with her slowly, over time, I became what she needed me to be…and now you're back."

"You lived for both of us, and now you don't know who you are when both of are here." Peyton realized and Damon nodded.

"I don't who I'm supposed to be…for you or for her. Which version of me am I supposed to be: Your Damon or Elena's Damon?" Damon asked aloud, looking every bit as lost as he was when Peyton had first met him.

"Be your Damon," Peyton tells him and Damon looks at her confused, "I love you Damon, but I'm not the one that needs you and neither is Elena. This baby is the one that needs you, if you can't live for yourself, live for our daughter. Be the best father you can be, the one I know you'll be."

"You really think I can do that?" Damon asked letting his guard down and letting her see his self-doubt.

"I think you're a better man that you give yourself credit for. I think you've let people like Caroline Forbes put you down so much that you've actually started to believe what she says about you. Don't live up to anyone's expectants, not mine, not Elena's, and especially not Caroline's." Peyton scowled at the mention of the blond Vampire.

"You really don't like do you?" Damon said amused.

"I met her once and wanted to drive a stake through her pretty little heart," Peyton said darkly and Damon laughed, "she reminds me of Rachel: stuck up, arrogant, and thinks she knows everything."

"Well, let's not talk about her any more than," Damon tells her as he tosses her last night's night gown, "Julian wants to talk to me, so you're with Sam today."

Brooke's house

7:51 A.M.

"So, you threatened my sister." Jeremy glared at Stefan as the two got out supplies from Brooke's Witchy closet.

"I politely asked Elena to stay away from Damon and when she refused, I told her to stay away from him or else." Stefan said blankly as he put something in the wooden basket he was holding.

"Ergo, you threatened her. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you like my sister being with Damon?" Jeremy asked wondering where this one-eighty has come from.

"I did," Stefan admits as he turns to face the hunter, "because I thought she would be the closest Damon would ever get to happiness. But I was wrong."

"You think Damon is better off with this Peyton chick you barely know?" Jeremy asked a little angry on Elena's behalf.

"I don't know her well enough to judge that. But I do know that this baby is probably the best thing to ever happen Damon. I could see it in his face when she told him, he wanted this baby, he wanted happiness, he could practically taste it on his lips." Stefan told the young hunter who scoffed.

"How do you even know the baby is his?" Jeremy demanded hotly.

"Because Damon is a lot of things, gullible is not one of them. If Damon believes that this kid is his, that's good enough for me. I've seen a change in him since he's been back, something only someone who's known him as long as Luna and I have would see. As noble as the actions he's taken in the last three years may seem, they are all driven by one selfish desire deep inside his heart." Stefan paused waiting for Jeremy to catch up.

"Elena." Jeremy said slowly as he realized where Stefan was going with this.

"Since he's been back, I've seen him act in the self-interest of someone besides himself for the first time in decades, in the self-interest of his child. No matter whose baby it is biologically, Damon already loves it like it's his own. Peyton and this baby bring out the best in him and Elena, while she may bring out the good in him, she also brings out all of his worst qualities," Stefan paused letting Jeremy absorb this before continuing, "I'm doing what I think is best for my older brother. Now you need to do what is best for your sister and keep her away from Damon. I may not love her anymore, but I would hate to hurt her Jeremy."

"You touch her and I will kill you!" Jeremy snarls and Stefan smiles amused.

"That threat would be more taken more seriously if I didn't know that Damon had already snapped your neck for no reason. Tell me, what do you think Damon would do to you if you killed me, Hunter's curse or no Hunters curse?" Stefan asked and Jeremy stiffed as all sorts or terrible scenarios flashed through his mind.

With a condescending smirk that would've made Damon proud, Stefan patted the hunter on the shoulder before walking out of the closet. Grumbling, Jeremy followed the Vampire and the pair made their way down stairs. They made their way into the living room where the others were preparing for the spell. Luna, Bonnie, and Enzo were sitting on the couch while Brooke sat in the center of the floor, stirring a large pot that resembled a cauldron. When the pair walked in, everyone turned to them as Stefan handed Brooke the basket.

"You get me everything boys?" Brooke asked as she stared at them intensely.

"Soot from a forest fire, water from the Bermuda triangle, and the hair of a Werewolf." Stefan listed and Brooke nodded pleased.

"Where did you get all this stuff?" Bonnie asked curiously.

"I know a guy," Brooke said simply as she poured in the soot and the water before dropping the hair in and beginning to stir, "now, before I can begin the spell, I need one last ingredient: blood from a blood relative."

"That's simply enough to acquire." Stefan said before letting out his true face and bringing his wrist up to his face.

"Hold your horses for a minute Stefan," Brooke told him without looking away from the pot and Stefan paused, "I didn't mean from Damon, I meant a blood relative of Peyton."

"Well unless you can pull out one out of a magical hat, then we have a problem." Enzo said sarcastically as dread began to settle in their stomachs.

"Excluding the baby, does she even have one alive? I mean, she was trapped in that prison world for fifteen years." Jeremy pointed out.

"She was adopted, her birth mom died when we were in high school, and no one has any idea who her father was, but she does have one remaining blood relative," Brooke told them as the doorbell rang, "and that should be him. Luna, would you mind?"

Luna smiled brightly, excitement visible in her before she stood up. Luna blurred out of the room and they all heard her answer the door. They heard Luna begin conversing with a deep voiced male, but even Stefan and Enzo couldn't make out what they were saying. When they walked into the room, those who were sitting down stood up and began studying there guest.

It was an African-American male in his late thirties or early forties dressed in a military uniform. He was wearing a military cap on his head and had a much decorated uniform with lots of stars. He was very muscular and had a serious look on his face that only seemed exaggerated by his clenched fists.

"Glad you got my message." Brooke told him still not looking away from the stirring pot.

"She's alive, really alive?" the man asked his voice full of as much hope as there was disbelief.

"alive, pregnant, and hasn't aged a day," Brooke assured them, "Derek, this is Damon and Luna's brother Stefan, his friends Bonnie and Jeremy, and Damon's old friend Enzo. Guys, this is Sargent Derek Sommers, Peyton's half-brother."

"So, how are we getting my little sister back?" Derek demanded.

Whitmore College

8:07 A.M.

"So how are you doing Elena?" Luke asked as the class emptied out.

"Well, the man I love is having a baby with the woman he is legally married to, Damon is pulling farther away from me and closer to her the more time passes, and his brother, who I always thought would at least remain my friend if nothing else, threatened to kill me if I didn't stay away from Damon. I'm great Luke." Elena told him sarcasm marring her words.

"I'm sorry, I feel like this is all my fault." Luke sighed with a hint of self-loathing and Elena regretted her tirade.

"This is not your fault." Elena assured him as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"She's right."

Luke and Elena turned to the doorway to see Damon standing there. Damon walked into the room and gently closed the door behind him. He walked down the aisle towards them and Elena stood protectively in front of the Witch. Damon smiled in amusement and Elena was acutely aware of the fact that she didn't stand a chance against her sire in a fight.

"It's not your fault that Peyton is alive, it's not your fault that she's pregnant, and it's not your fault that my and Elena's relationship is more complicated than ever," Damon told him calmly as he stood in front of them, "but me being trapped on the Other Side when it went down and the sequential grief it caused my loved ones? Yeah, that is absolutely your fault."

"What are you doing here Damon?" Elena asked the man she loved fearfully.

"Well, Julian knows that Luke and Liv's father is the one guarding Zeus' crown and he ordered me to bring in one of the Wonder Twins. At first I was just gonna bring in Crazy Locks, but then I thought, why? I mean, she never did anything to me. But your new best friend however, is responsible for me being on the Other Side with Bonnie when it went kaboom. So get out of my way Elena." Damon ordered in a cold voice.

"Damon, if you give him the crown he will take everything from you." Luke begged the Vampire to see sense but Damon would have none of it.

"He already took everything from me fifteen years ago." Damon said in a cold as ice voice.

 _Tree Hill gas station, September 16_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _11:12 A.M._

" _We have to hurry or we'll be late for Jamie's party." Peyton reminded him as he filled the Comoro up with gas._

" _I know okay! You know, you've been real moody lately." Damon noted and Peyton glared at him._

" _Excuse me?" Peyton hissed but Damon was unaffected._

" _Moody, temperamental, bipolar. What's going on Peyt?" Damon asked concerned and Peyton's anger faded._

" _I don't know. I just seemed to go from angry to sad to horny in seconds all day." Peyton said and Damon walked over and took her in his arms._

" _We'll figure it out, we always figure it out. Tomorrow, we're going to the doctor, seeing if there's a medical reason for your mood swing, okay?" Damon told her as he stepped back and tilted her head up._

 _Peyton nodded so Damon when inside to pay for gas. When he came back out, he realized with horror that his wife was gone._

"I don't want to hurt you Elena, but I will if I have to." Damon said blankly with an expression that matched.

"I'm not letting you do this Damon. Come on, you are better than this." Elena pleaded only for Damon to reach out and wrap his hand around her throat.

"No, I'm not," Damon told her coldly as he lifted her into the air, "and even if I was, I can't afford to be the better man with Peyton's life at risk. Stefan was right about me all along: I am the villain of our family's saga."

Damon then put his other hand on Elena's cheek, gently as though he was caressing it. However, he then snapped her neck before dropping her to the floor.

Brooke's house

8: 31 A.M.

Brooke stirred the pot, now with Derek's blood added to it, for a second before stopping. Brooke took out a light from her pocket and held it over the pot before pushing the black button and the orange flame came out. She lowered the flame an inch and the contents of the pot caught fire. Putting the lighter down, Brooke closed her eyes and began to chant.

The pot began to tremble and move from side to side. The others watched as Brooke's eyes snapped open and seemed to stare into the great beyond as she continued chanting. The pot's trembling and swaying increased to the point that it sounded like someone was tapping their foot on the floor repeatedly. Finally, the spot just toppled over and the flaming water rushed onto the floor as Brooke seemed to come back to herself. Brooke waved a hand and the water vanished as she stood up.

"I know where she is," Brooke told them before turning to Derek, "Derek, are there any abandoned Military bases nearby?"

"Yeah, there's one about fifteen minutes from here. It was abandoned during the second World War." Derek told her confused as to where she was going with this.

"Take us there, because that's where Peyton is." Brooke barked at him.

As if to interrupt her, Jeremy's phone started ringing. Looking sheepish, Jeremy pulls out his phone and checks who it is as everyone gives him pointed looks. Seeing that it's his sister, Jeremy turns away before answering.

"Yeah Elena, were about to go on a rescue mission/aid, so now's not really a good time." Jeremy told her with his back to the others.

"Well make time Jer. Damon was just here and he snapped my neck before kidnapping Luke." Elena told him distressed and the listening Vampires exchanged uneasy looks at this information.

"Luke would probably know his where father is." Stefan mentioned.

"And Luke did leave him stranded on the Other Side." Luna reminded her brother.

"Damon has killed people for less." Enzo told them as if they didn't already know.

"Wait, Damon wants Julian to find the crown about as much as we do. He's not gonna help Julian find the man guarding it…right?" Stefan looked at the others for reassurance.

"You have no idea just how far Damon will go for Peyton." Luna told him firmly.

 _Tree Hill, September 16_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _12:57 P.M._

 _A man had his back thrown against the side of a rooftop as a furious Damon and Luna beared down on him. The man scrambled to get away but his back was pressed against the edge of the rooftop. Damon stalked over and lifted him into the air by his collar. The man panicked, but the slight growl that emerged from Damon's throat stilled him and all he could do was stare into Damon's hard blue eyes._

" _Where is she?" Damon demanded in a deadly voice._

" _I don't know!" The man said desperately and Damon flashed him an unfriendly smile._

" _The funny thing about humans: no matter how good they are at lying, their hearts speed up a little when they do. Since you just lied to me, I now have to employ more drastic measures to find my wife." Damon told him in a dark voice._

 _Damon lowers him back to the roof before releasing the man's color. Any relief that man felt was quickly erased when Damon grabbed his right arm and twisted it at an unnatural angle. The pain that accompanied the sound of his arm breaking all but sends the man to his knees as he screamed in agony. Damon released the man's arm only to grab him around his neck and lifted him up into the air. The man stared fearfully at Damon as Damon unleashed his true, Vampire face._

" _WHERE IS SHE!? TELL ME OR I WILL BREAK EVERY LAST BONE IN YOUR BODY!" Damon snarled ferociously._

" _I don't know, I swear to god!" The man told him desperately._

" _SWEAR TO ME!" Damon ordered as he tightened his grip on the man's throat._

" _Okay, okay I'll talk! Julian's got her in an abandoned Apartment complex on the edge of town, you can't miss It.!" The man told him desperate for his life._

 _Damon glared at the man before throwing over the edge of the roof. The man screamed in terror as he fell to his death._

"We need to get Peyton out of there now!" Luna ordered.

"We'll give Elena the address on the way and meet up with her there." Brooke ordered.

Julian's base, Damon and Peyton's room

8:50 A.M.

"So how was it?" Sam asked Peyton casually as Peyton sat at her desk going over some music.

"How was what?" Peyton asked distractedly.

"The sex with Damon." Sam said simply and smirked when Peyton froze.

"I-Is it that obvious?" Peyton asked as she looked over at Sam red as a tomato.

"Only to someone who knew you and Damon back in the nineties. You have a certain glow about you today that you haven't since you and Damon were, well, _together_ last." Sam enjoyed teasing her friend.

"Well it was good, really good actually. But I'm not sure where this leaves us." Peyton confessed to Sam's confusion.

"You two slept together, but you're not sure where you guys stand? I'm sorry, what?" Sam asked royally confused.

"Damon's going through what I guess we can call an identity crisis. All his life, he has always lived for someone else: his mother, his siblings, Katherine, me, Elena, the list goes on. For the last three years, he lived for Elena until I came back." Peyton explained and Sam began to understand.

"He doesn't know who he's supposed to be, he doesn't know who he is," Sam realized, "I noticed something was off about him, but I didn't know it was that serious."

"He keeps the things that bother him most to himself. Anyway, I'll back off on any attempt to get back together until he can figure out who exactly he is. If, when the time comes, he chooses to be with me, then I'll be the happiest woman on the planet. If he chooses to be with Elena, I'll be lying if I say that I'll be happy about it but I will accept it." Peyton told her friend.

"Damon would be an idiot to choose Elena over you," Sam told Peyton and Peyton looked at gratefully, "from what I understand, Elena keeps trying to get Damon to be the 'better man.' She doesn't understand that Damon has been good along, that it was Stefan that gave him the cross of the Villain to bear. Damon didn't need someone to change him; he just needed someone to believe in him unconditionally…like you do."

Elsewhere in Julian's base, Luke came to. He realized that he was in a chair and his arms were bounded to the chair by metal cords. Luke looked around and realized with more than a little fear that his chair was hooded up to a machine. It had giant electrical bulbs and wires on the floor. Luke looked over to see Julian and Damon standing by the door, Julian looking gleeful and Damon looking stoic.

"I'm glad you're awake Luke," Julian said gleefully as he approached the other Witch, "you and I have much to talk about."

"I'm not telling you anything." Luke told him determined as he glared at the wicked Witch.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Perhaps you just need to see things y way." Julian told him began signaling Damon.

Damon walked over to the machine and Luke's heart started to race in fear. Damon reached for a lever and wrapped his hand around it. Before he flipped it, Damon turned towards Luke. Damon's expression was still that stoic expression and it was beginning to unnerve Luke. Then, Damon turned towards Julian who was watching him curiously.

"You know, I have hated just about every order you given me since you turned me into your Vampire enforcer of darkness." Damon told Julian point blank.

"Your point?" Julian asked bored.

"This one…I'm actually going to enjoy." Damon said before shooting Luke a malicious grin and flipping the switch and Luke's screams echoed throughout the room.

Outside the base, on a hill overlooking the entrance, Brooke, Derek, Stefan, Luna, Enzo, Jeremy, Bonnie, and Elena observed the entrance. There was a lone guard standing outside the entrance, keeping watch.

"I say we just kill the guy and get in." Enzo was saying impatiently.

"Easy Enzo, think." Luna gently chided him.

"If we do that, then we lose our guide. Once we get inside, we'll have no idea where they're keeping Peyton." Derek pointed out.

"And let me make this clear, saving Peyton is the objective," Brooke told them as she turned around to survey the group, "we will not be trying to capture Damon like a certain blonde Vampire who shall remain nameless, wanted to do out of spit. We rescue Peyton, Julian loses his leverage against Damon, Damon interrogates him about the location of my granddaughter, and we all go home safe and sound. Any questions?"

"No, but I may have an idea." Luna told her with a grin forming on her lips.

A few minutes later, the cloaked guard looked over as he heard the click of high heels on the ground. Turning his head, he sees a blood teenage girl with bright blue eyes walking towards him with a flirtatious smile. The man is so focused on her that by the time he realizes someone is behind him, the person already has their hand around his throat.

"Do you want to live?" Stefan asked the man gruffly.

"Yes." The man said terrified.

"Good, then you are going to get us into the base and show us the way to Peyton Sawyer's room. If you deceive us, I'll kill you in a far more painfully way than anything Julian will ever do to you." Stefan whispers into the man's ear.

Back inside the base, Damon flicks the switch back and the electricity stops flowing. Luke stops screaming and slumps back into the chair, his breathing hard and labored. Julian smiled as he walked over to the panting Witch and leaned down so he could look the blonde in the eyes. Luke glared spitefully up at Julian who smirked.

"You need not suffer this way Luke. Just tell me where your father is and you go. I'll even have one of my men drop you off at your dorm." Julian offered but Luke simply scoffed at him.

"This is how you get off, isn't it? You take pleasure in torturing people." Luke spat at him but Julian simply chuckled at him in amusement.

"Oh I haven't even begun to torture you. Now him I tortured," Julian said as he pointed at Damon who was stoic once again, "I mean, I let him think his wife was dead for fifteen years! Want to know how I did it? Damon, tell the man how I did it."

"He kidnapped her at a gas station. Then, when I found where he was holding her, he teleported her and himself to a prison dimension. To make sure I wouldn't look into it, he cast a spell that created duplicates of Peyton and himself. Exact copies, right down to the DNA, and then he shot them both in the head." Damon said in a toneless voice as he thought back to that day.

 _Tree Hill, September 16_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _1:35 P.M._

 _Damon and Luna had just exited Damon's Comoro when they heard two gunshots. Even more unsettling, their Vampire senses let them know that the shots came from the building in front of them: The abandoned apartment complex that held Damon's wife Peyton inside it. The two siblings exchanged horrified looks before blurring over to the building and Damon kicked the front door in. the two stepped inside the house and immediately realized that the first floor was simply a desk and stairs. The two siblings quickly descended the stairs and made their way up the stairs. Damon walked into the first room on the right and froze in horror._

 _Damon vaguely heard Luna follow him inside and gasp in horror, but he could tear his eyes away from the body of his wife. Damon numbly walked over to her body and sank to his knees in front of Peyton. He caressed her cheek before lifting the upper half of her body into a sitting position. Tears ran down his face and began to drip onto the bullet wound in her forehead._

" _Peyton, look at me," Damon pleaded in a broken voice, "please, open your eyes Peyton, this isn't how our story is supposed to end. Look at me Peyton, LOOK AT ME!"_

"See, now that's torture," Julian told Luke as he pointed to the anguished, broken look in Damon's eyes, "that's remembered pain from fifteen years ago when he knows that she's alive and breathing in this base. I haven't even begun to torture you Luke."

Julian nodded at Damon and Damon's expression morphed into that stoic expression once more before he nodded back. Damon turned back to the machine behind him and he pulled the lever down again. The machine started up again and Luke screamed as electricity once more courses through his body.

In another part of the base, the guard led the group inside the base. Stefan held his throat in his hand and the man was terrified out of his mind that Stefan would snap his neck if he made a wrong move. Elena stared at Stefan startled; first he threatens her and now he was threatening a man in a rather Damon like manner. She loved the elder Salvatore with all her heart, but she didn't want Stefan lose himself in his quest to save his brother.

"Do you guys hear that?" Luna asked as they entered the hallways.

"Yeah," Stefan said as tilted his head to the side, "it sounds like…screaming."

"It's Luke; he sounds like he's in a lot of pain." Elena said frowning in concern.

"Of course he's in pain; Julian is probably having my brother torture him." Luna said as though Elena was three.

"Let's not argue amongst ourselves. How about we split into two teams, one goes to rescue Peyton, one rescue's Luke." Stefan suggested to Brooke.

"The objective is Peyton." Brooke reminded him in a cool voice.

"And she is my objective, but we don't need all of us to rescue her, plus Sam seems to be on our side. Look, as far as I'm concerned, Luke can go die in a hole for what he did, but some of us are more compassionate than others." Stefan said with a pointed glance at Bonnie and Elena.

"Stefan." Elena said surprised at his callousness.

"Oh don't give me that judgmental tone Elena. As I recall it, you had a similar attitude to Damon when he snapped Jeremy's neck." Stefan pointed out and Elena winced at the reminded.

"Enough fighting guys, Stefan has a pointed Brooke," Luna pointed out as she turned her gaze towards her friend, "look, I'll take Elena, Bonnie, and Jeremy to save Luke while the rest of you go bust out Peyton. Everyone good?"

"Hey, who are you?" two male Witched came down the hall and eyed the group suspiciously.

Before the captured guard could call for help, Derek pulled out two pistols and fired. The two Witches fell to the ground with bullets in their head as Derek put his guns away. As the younger generation stared at him stunned, Derek turned to Brooke with a stern look on his face.

"Luna's plan makes strategic sense Brooke: a group this size will just draw attention to us, which will make it harder for our guide to lead us to my sister," Derek gestured to the captured guard, "and we're just wasting time arguing about it. Let's just get on with it."

"Fine, but don't get caught." Brooke finally conceded.

Back in the torture room, Luke screamed his heart out before Damon cut the electricity. Luke breathed as the pain stopped but that was short lived. Damon walked in front of him and lilted his head up so that he was looking at the Vampire's face.

"Look Witch boy, I'm trying to make this easy for you, but not only could I do this all day, but I haven't brought out my A-game, hell not even my B-game. I want Julian to win as much as you, but if you don't cooperate with him, this won't end well for you Luke." Damon told him surprising himself with not wanting this guy to suffer anymore.

"Maybe he doesn't have to suffer anymore big brother." Luna announced as she walked into the room with Elena, Bonnie, and Jeremy behind her.

Damon's hand slid from Luke's chin to his side as he turned to face them. Julian walked over and stood next to Damon as Luke looked over at them, thinking he was finally saved.

"Well, what have we here?" Julian asked with a predatory grin."

"It's over Julian, your madness stops here." Luna told him sounding like Stefan for a moment, so much so that Damon blinks to make sure he is seeing the right sibling.

"Oh I don't think so, not with Damon here to protect me." Julian says as he pats Damon on the shoulder like they are old friends.

In another part of the base, the captured guard is leading Stefan, Brooke, Enzo, and Derek towards Peyton's room. However, almost simultaneously and so suddenly that if you blinked you'd miss it, all the doors opened and the Witches poured out into the hall. Realizing that they had been betrayed, Stefan snarled before snapping their captive's neck. As Stefan let the corpse fall to the ground, the four of them realize they are greatly outnumbered.

"The odds are not in our favor mates. Should we run, come back to fight another day?" Enzo suggests.

"We may never get another chance like this. We need to find Peyton and get out of here, now." Brooke ordered with Derek nodding in agreement.

"Then it's simple: we kill every last one of them." Stefan says darkly with Enzo and Brooke looking at him stunned.

"Who are you and what have you done with Stefan?" Brooke asked half serious.

"You usually try and avoid a slaughter." Enzo agreed with the Witch.

"Considering these guys are holding my brother and pregnant sister-in-law hostage, they deserve a slaughter." Stefan said grimly with Enzo smirking at him.

"I finally like you Stefan." Enzo told him with Stefan smirking back at him.

"Don't get used to it." Stefan told him before the fight began.

"Well well, how did you find us?" Julian asked the intruders.

"We realized that we had been trying to track Damon, when we should have been trying to track Peyton." Bonnie told him as they stood tall in front of the madman.

"Clever, I did overlook Peyton didn't I? I assume this means Derek is here?" Julian directed this to Luna who nodded.

"Your madness won't continue Julian. We are taking my family back and then we will kill you." Luna hissed at him.

"We shall see." Julian smirked condescendingly at the Vampire.

Derek killed two more Witches by shooting them in the head while Brooke knocked another one out. Enzo snapped another one's neck while Stefan bit into the neck of his. While everyone else was moving on to the next victim, Stefan could not. Human blood had always been addictive to him and today was no different. As hard as he tried, Stefan could not separate his fangs from the screaming Witch's neck. Seeing the problem, Enzo blurred over and yanked Stefan away his prey. Stefan whirled around and snarled causing Enzo to back up defensively.

"It's me Stefan, its Enzo." Enzo told him carefully trying to reach him.

But it was not Enzo that Stefan saw. He was not seeing the base, but rather a scene from almost two years ago. He and his brother were on the streets of Mystic Falls with a bleeding woman with a neck wound on the sidewalk. Damon was staring at him imploringly as blood dripped down Stefan's chin.

"Control little brother." Damon told him sagely.

Then Stefan came back to himself. Shaking his head, Stefan wiped the blood from his chin and nodded at Enzo gratefully. However, it was then that he heard it: the hallway was completely silent, save for the heartbeats of his companions as all the Witches were dead. And just down the hall, Stefan could hear three more. Looking at Enzo, Stefan could tell that Enzo heard them to.

"I think we found Peyton." Stefan called to Brooke and Derek.

Stefan and Enzo led the living pair down the hall and towards the room. With caution, Derek approached it with his pistols raised and approached the door carefully. With stealth, Derek walked over before kicking the door in. The four of them burst inside the room but relaxed when they realized it was just a terrified Sam and Peyton. Derek all but dropped his weapons to the floor as he saw that Brooke was right: Peyton had indeed not aged a day.

"Peyton." Derek breathed.

"Derek?" Peyton questioned as she examined the man who resembled her half-brother so greatly.

Derek walked over and the two siblings embraced each other. Everyone smiled slightly at the pair before Brooke cleared her throat. The two separated as everyone looked at her.

"As touched as I am by this reunion, we need to get going. All of us." Brooke gives her daughter a stern glance as if daring her to argue and Sam nods.

"We need to tell Damon that I'm safe." Petron insists as the group of six began to move down the hall.

"I'll text him." Sam says as she pulls out her phone.

"Do you really think that you can beat us?" Julian asked skeptically as he gestures to himself and Damon.

"Oh, you mean you're actually gonna fight instead of forcing my brother to do you're dirty work?" Luna asked condescendingly and then smiles sweetly as Julian glowers at her.

Damon phone then goes off, signaling a text. Everyone looks over at him as he pulls out his phone and brushes the touch screen. Damon freezes as he reads the message from Sam. 'Peyton is safe; we're on our way out.'

"What does it say?" Julian asked impatiently but Damon ignores him as he types another message.

"He wants me to prove it." Sam tells the others as the sneak passed another hallway.

"Peyton, tell Sam something that only my brother would know." Stefan ordered.

Peyton thought about it for a moment before it came to her.

Damon phone went off and he looked at the new message. 'I will never turn my back on you. Even in your darkest moments, I will never abandon you-Peyton' it read. Filled with relief and determination, Damon pocketed his phone and looked over at Julian. Julian opened his mouth to speak, but wasn't given the chance before Damon blurred over and tackled him to the wall, pinning him to it by holding his neck against it in a vice grip.

"What are you doing?!" Julian hissed at him.

"I told you that the day Peyton was out of danger was the day you died. Well it looks like today is that day." Damon told him with a dark smile.

 **So, what do you guys think? Leave any thoughts or comments in a review. Please review, they inspire me to keep going.**


	8. Damon's decision

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Brooke's house, September 16th

9:20 A.M.

"Nice place." Peyton comments as she and Sam look around.

"It's not much, but its home." Brooke said modestly, causing Sam to look at her like she was crazy.

"Even my best foster home wasn't this nice." Sam said and Brooke to smile before walking over to them and enveloping both in a hug.

"I'm glad you guys are here." Brooke whispered.

Julian's base

9:22 A.M.

Luke was being supported by Bonnie as the two of them, along with the Gilberts and Luna, watched Damon tie Julian to the chair that Luke himself had just been in. Julian had a bloody lip and a black eye, as Damon had proceeded to beat the crap out of him before putting him in the chair. Damon tightened the cables around Julian's wrists and the Witch hissed in pain. Smiling in pleasure, Damon stood up before looking over at his audience.

"Anyone with weak stomachs get out, things are about to get a little…bloody." Damon smirked down at Julian who stared back at him impassively.

"Damon, if you're gonna kill him, just do it. You don't need to torture him." Elena pleaded with him ignoring the angry look Luna shot her.

"Oh, I disagree Elena, but that's not why I'm gonna torture him," Damon told her as he walked towards a corner of the room, "you see, in case you've forgotten, he has Sam's daughter stashed somewhere. And since he can't use my wife and unborn child as a bargaining chip anymore, I'm free to acquire that information…by any means necessary."

"You're still on that?" Julian asks sarcastically.

"Sam is part of our family." Luna began icily.

"You come at her, you come at us." Damon finished hatred coloring his voice.

Damon came back over, this time with a katana in his hand. Julian started to look a little worried as Damon came to stand in front of him. As Damon swung the sword around a few times, Julian gulped as Luna smirked and Luke looked on with dark satisfaction. The only people seeming uncomfortable with this were Jeremy, Elena, and Bonnie.

"You know, this sword is the exact same one you forced me to torture Stefan with," Damon said casually as he swung it around a few more times, "but the thing about becoming a vampire: when you turn, your pain tolerance is magnified by almost a hundred fold. I think it's time you felt it, I want you to feel my brother's pain Julian."

As Damon stoke, he turned the sword towards Julian. As Damon moved the sword closer, Julian struggled to get free but Damon's time in the confederacy had taught him how to skillfully restrain someone with a knot. Damon's face was expressionless as the sword neared Julian's stomach, the same area where Julian had forced Damon to first strike Stefan with the katana. However, just before it made contact with Julian, Damon stopped the sword's descent and looked at Julian with pure hate in his eyes.

"Before you die, you will feel everything you made me do to Stefan, a hundred fold. No one forces me to hurt my little brother…no one." Damon growled before plunging the sword into his stomach and smiling gleefully as Julian let out an agonized scream.

Brooke's house

9:55 A.M.

"It's nice to see you outside of Julian's thumb." Stefan mentioned as he leaned against the doorway to the kitchen as Peyton sat at the table eating a bowl of oranges.

"And outside my brother and Brooke's hovering." Peyton mentioned gleeful that she had some alone time.

"To be fair to them, they did think you were dead for fifteen years. I only thought Damon was gone for a few months and I don't plan to let him outside of my sight for the next week." Stefan told her and Peyton nodded as she chewed on an orange, realizing he had a point.

"You know, I was happy to hear that you two had patched things up. Damon always brushed it off, but I could tell how much it hurt him not to have the relationship he used to have with you." Peyton told him and Stefan gave what Peyton thought was a mix between a frown and a grin.

"It was a long road, but I think we're in a better place than we've been in a long time," Stefan told her before a smile blossomed on his lips, "You know, Damon's different than I remember…and I think that has a lot to do with you."

"Different how?" Peyton asked curiously as she picked up another orange.

"Less impulsive, he thinks through more, and, most importantly, he doesn't seem to care what Elena thinks of him anymore." Stefan told her and Peyton shook her head.

"No, he still does," Peyton said softly, "it's just that, for the first time, she's no longer his number one priority. If he loses her, he'll be devastated, but he has something to live for now, something besides the love of a girl." Peyton's hand had drifted down towards her stomach as she spoke and Stefan understood.

"The baby, you're talking about the baby." Stefan said slowly and Peyton nodded.

"Yes, the baby gives him something that Elena never could, heals something that the love of her or me could never hope to heal." Peyton said softly and Stefan nodded.

"I agree I saw it the moment you told him you were pregnant," Stefan mentioned and Peyton looked at him curiously, "this baby seem to give him something that he's only gotten from you and Luna before this: someone's unwavering love and acceptance."

Julian's base

10:04 A.M.

"Please…just kill me?" Julian begs weakly.

"No, I don't think so," Damon says as he kneels down as he can look Julian in the eye, "you don't deserve a quick death, not after all you've done."

"Damon, please stop this. You're better than this." Elena pleads and something in Damon snaps.

"No, I'm not!" Damon snarls as he stands up and glares at her, causing her to flinch, "this is who I am Elena! I'm Damon Salvatore Damn it! I'm vengeful, cruel, sadistic, and I hold grudges for decades! Hell, I'm Klaus Mikaelson minus the paranoia! This is who I am; stop trying to make me into something I'm not!"

"Damon calm down." Bonnie tried to calm her friend but he had had enough.

"No, I won't calm down! For the past three years, she has alternated between hating me and trying to change me into a 'better man' and I've had enough! This is me Elena, either take me as I am or get out of my life!" Damon snarled and Elena blinked as her eyes filled with tears.

Damon turned around and looked back down at his nemesis. Julian stared up at him weakly, reminding Damon strongly of himself during his Augustine days. If it were anyone else, Damon might pity the person, but it wasn't anyone else. It was Julian, the man who had forced him to commit terrible acts to his loved ones and had used Peyton and Sam's daughter as a bargaining chip to ensure Damon's cooperation.

"You begged me for mercy earlier," Damon said casually, "tell me, did she beg you for mercy when you kidnapped her?"

"What?" Julian asked confused as everyone but Luna stared at Damon lost.

"The day you kidnapped Peyton from that gas station, did she beg you for mercy? Did she beg you to let her go; did she beg you for anything at all?" Damon demanded and, when Julian failed to respond, Damon punched him in the mouth, "Answer me!"

"That's what this is about, Peyton?" Julian asked after he spat out some blood.

"Do you know what you did to me that day? Of course you don't, all you care about is causing death and destruction," Damon interrupts before Julian can answer as the Vampire kneeled down, "You didn't just take away my wife that day, you took my light. The only light that I had had in a long time, you took my purpose, my humanity. The last shred of humanity I had left, that I'd somehow managed to hold on to during the darkest time of my life in the fifties, died. I lost the last part of me that felt human; I just…stopped caring, about anyone or anything. Hell, I didn't even care whether I lived or died! That Julian is what you did to me, what you took from me!" Damon told him in an emotional voice as, against his will, tears fell from his eyes.

Asides from Julian, there was not a dry eye in the room. Bonnie and Elena had tears rolling down there cheeks, Luke and Jeremy had a hard time controlling their own tears, even Luna, who knew all of this, found her eyes watering for her brother's pain. Damon wiped his eyes before standing back up and looking down at Julian, his face expressionless once more. Julian looked back up at him, feeling fear and, though he would never admit it, a small sliver of regret. Julian realized that his time had come; there was no getting out of this.

"Now I'm gonna ask you one more time, where is Sam's daughter? Tell me the truth and I will grant will one mercy: I will end your suffering and kill you." Damon told him coldly as he stared expressionless at his enemy.

"Okay, I'll talk," Julian said groaning and everyone listened intently, "there's a house in the woods about an hour east of here. It's guarded by some of my top men; you'll need to be careful." Julian warned him.

"I've taken on an Original; sometimes I've won, so I think I can handle your goons. Bon-Bon, take Witch boy out of here, the rest of you come with me, we're gonna go save a little girl." Damon ordered as he walked over to the machine behind Julian and began fiddling with a dial.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Julian asked fear beginning to spread through him.

"Oh, I just turned the electricity up to its highest level." Damon said cheerfully as he reached for the lever.

"But you promised me you'd end my suffering!" Julian protested.

"And so I will, once the electricity kills you." Damon said with a smirk before flipping the lever and Julian screamed in agony as he was shocked.

House in the middle of the woods

11:37 A.M.

There were four guards standing outside a wooden house when one suddenly yelped in pain. The other three turned towards him to see an arrow in his chest. The guard collapsed to the ground, dead as the other three looked around. One heard two simultaneous snapping sounds and turned to see his two comrades' drop to the ground, their necks obviously broken. Standing over them were two young women, one with pale skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes, while her companion had an olive skin tone, brown hair, and brown eyes. Feeling someone standing behind him, he turned around to see a dark haired man with the same pale skin and blue eyes as the blonde girl.

"I'm gonna make this simple: yes, we are Vampires. We're here to save a little girl, Julian is dead and my sister and I are over a century old, so you can't beat us or outsmart us. Your death can either be quick and painless, or long and filled with torture, understand?" The man nodded and Damon smirked as Jeremy walked into the clearing, "excellent, now I have some questions: first, who owns this house?"

"Julian." The man said nervously.

"Good, so Vampires can come and go as we please. Question Two: is the Daughter of Samantha Walker in the house?" Damon demands.

"Yes, she just got here two days ago." The man answered honestly.

"Good, Question Three: are there any more of your men in the house or around it?" Damon asks.

"No men around it, but there are five in the living room."

"Okay, sounds easy enough. Finally, why do you work for Julian?" Damon asked dangerously.

"He promised me power." The man said simply and unashamed.

Damon scowled before wrapping his hands around the man's throat and snapping his neck. The man fell to the ground as Damon turned away from him and walked up the porch. With the Gilberts looking at all the lifeless bodies around them remorsefully, the others quickly followed him up the steps. Damon kicked the door in, actually ripping it off its hinges with his kick, before the four of them entered the house. Five people stood in front of them, four men and one woman, and all of them looked ready for a fight.

"Julian is dead. Now you can either stand aside and live another day or you can try and fight, key word _try_." Damon told him like he was reading them their rights.

"You won't get passed us." The woman, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Meredith Fell now that Damon looked at her, told him haughtily.

"You hear that Damon, they think they can take us." Luna told her brother giggling.

"These poor, unfortunate, morons," Damon says with a smirk before looking at his sister, "shall we?"

"After you." Luna offered and the Vampire Siblings smirked as the allowed their inner Vampires to show.

Brooke's House

11:58 A.M.

"Okay, Thanks Bonnie." Stefan said before he hung up as he walked into the living room and everyone turned their attention to him.

"Well?" Sam asked desperately.

"Damon managed to get out of Julian that he has her in some house in the woods an hours east of the base. They should've gotten there by now according to Bonnie." Stefan assures her.

The house in the woods

12: 03 P.M.

Damon was it the kitchen, drying his hands after washing the blood off them. Normally, he didn't clean himself up until after he got home, but he didn't want this likely terrified little girl to see him with blood on him. Damon put the hand towel down and walked into the living room where the other were dragging the bodies outside and burying them. Once again, for the little girl, that no one wanted to traumatize more than she already had for the last six months. Listening, Damon heard a heartbeat. Smiling to himself, Damon walked down the hall as he followed the sound of the heartbeat.

Damon reached the room in the back of the house, an old, faded wooden door that was unpainted, stood blocking hi from his objective. Damon reached out and opened the door and walked inside, noticing that save for a small bed, the room was completely empty. Still hearing the heartbeat, and noticing another wooden door that possibly led to a closet, Damon walked over to the door. He pulled open the door and the girl from Sam's picture yelped as she flung herself back into the closet, she looked up at him brown eyes filled with terror and Damon noticed bruises on her face and arms. Internally, Damon bristled with fear but he didn't allow it to show, not wanting to frighten her. Instead, he planted a pleasant smile on his face as he knelt down so he could look her in the eyes and not seem so intimidating to her.

"Hi, you must be Brooke. I'm Damon; I'm a friend of your mom's." Damon told her n a soothing voice and the child looked up at him with tears sliding down her face.

"You are a friend of Momma's?" Brooke Walker asked timidly.

"Yeah, I've known her since she was a teenager. How about you and I get out of here and I take you to her?" Damon asked her soothingly as he held his hand out for Brooke to take.

Brooke hesitated for a moment before she took his hand. Damon smiled at her soothingly as he led her out of the room. Damon and Brooke walked outside the house where the other stood, dusting themselves off after burying the bodies. Luna looked over at her brother and the child before smiling. It all worked out, they had won.

New York City

12:46 P.M.

A man was sitting with his chair facing away from his desk, looking out the window that looked over New York. In his hands was the necklace that had once belonged to Kronos, The Necklace of the Sea. The door to his office opened and one of his male executives walked in. As the door closed, the man simply remained facing the window in his chair.

"Sir, it would appear that Julian…is dead." The executive said nervously as though he expected the man in the chair to go into a psychotic rage.

"Perhaps it was for the best," The man said calmly like Julian's death didn't affect him at all, "Julian was too wild for this task, more interested in causing chaos and making Damon Salvatore suffer than in achieving results."

The man then turned his chair around to his desk and placed the necklace on his desk. The man stood up, his executive flinching as though he expected to be struck. But the man paid him no mind, instead walking around his chair and back over to the window. The man put his hands behind his back and stared down at the city, his face expressionless.

"Maybe it is time that I take command of this operation." Dan Scott said thoughtfully.

Brooke's house

1:38 P.M.

"Luna, could you take Brooke up to the door. I need to talk to Elena for a minute." Damon told his sister as they and the Gilberts stood in front of the house with the car just behind them.

Luna and Jeremy exchanged an uneasy glance before then glancing at their respective sibling. Still, Luna nodded before taking the young girl's hand and walking up the steps while Jeremy walked back to the car and getting in on the driver's side. As their siblings waited for them, Damon and Elena faced each other, both realizing that this was the closest to alone they had gotten since they were in the car driving to blow up the grill.

"I don't where to start." Elena admitted after realizing that, despite having a million things running through her head, she didn't know what to say.

"Then how about I start: I married someone sixteen years ago, I thought she died, and now she's back. I didn't tell you about her and now you're pissed at me." Damon told her bluntly.

"Yeah…I am. How could you not tell me you were married?" Elena demanded feeling that familiar rise of anger that she had been feeling since she found out about Peyton.

"You are the last person who should be lecturing e about secrets." Damon told her coldly.

"What are you talking about?" Elena said confused.

"You were going to have Ric erase your memories of loving me," Damon reminded her and Elena stepped back looking shock, "wondering how I know? Julian delights in taunting people, stalking my loved ones is another one of his talents."

"Damon…I had to." Elena tried to explain but Damon wouldn't hear it.

"No, you just decided to take the easy out like you always do. You always take the easy way out in our relationship and I'm the one that gets hurt. You're a coward Elena," Damon told her and Elena couldn't argue with him, "I love you, but I can't keep pretending that what you do doesn't hurt me. You may think your actions only affect you, but they don't. Every action you take affects the people you love."

"So…what happens now?" Elena asks swallowing the hurt in her heart.

"…For my entire life as a Vampire, every move I have made has been done for the love of a woman," Damon admitted, "I think that right now, before I can be someone's boyfriend or husband…I need to be a brother and a father-to-be. For right now, I will stay here with my family and prepare for the birth of my daughter. And…I don't think we should see each other for a while."

"Are you…are you breaking up with me again?" Elena asked in a choked voice and Damon's heart clenched.

"Yes, I am. It's not about you or Peyton, it's about me…and a little about us. Peyton has always accepted me, never tried to change me because she could see I was good all along. All you've done is tried to change me." Damon told her and Elena couldn't speak.

Damon turned away from her and walked up the steps. Luna gave him a 'are you okay?' look and he smiled at her as reassuringly as he could. The two Vampires and one young witch faced the door before Damon pushed the door open. The trio walked inside and Sam rushed through to the door as Damon closed it. Brooke perked up as she saw her mother, dropping Luna's hand and running to the mother she hadn't seen in half a year.

"Mommy!" Brooke cried as Sam took the little girl in her arms.

"Oh thank god!" Sam cried as everyone else wondered in and smiled at the heart warming scene.

 **So, what do you guys think? Please leave any thoughts or comments you may have in a review.**


	9. A traitor among us

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Brooke's house, November 27th,

7:49 A.M.

"Ug, where is the seasoning?" Brooke called out in frustration as she looked around the cabinet.

"Third shelf from the left!" Peyton called from where she stood in the living room with her in-laws.

"Is she always this…?" Stefan trailed off not sure what to say.

"Controlling, high-maintenance, not wanting to accept help from anyone?" Luna supplied her brother with a grin.

"Yes, has been since I met her when we were kids." Peyton assured her brother-in-law.

"Oh you guys are so funny!" Brooke called from the door kitchen.

"Happy Thanks Giving to you to!" Peyton called sweetly and the other Salvatores laughed.

"So where is everyone else again?" Luna asked curiously.

"Sam went to go pick up some friends from the airport, Little B. is still sleeping, and Damon went to go pick up the turkey." Peyton reminded her as she absentmindedly caressed her swollen stomach.

"So how is my little niece today?" Luna asked curiously.

"Well, the morning sickness finally stopped, but my ankles are starting to swell. And even though she'll be out in four months, I'm actually gonna kind of missing it," Peyton said honestly, "before rolling her eyes at the look on the two Vampires faces, "obviously I won't miss the puking my guts out every morning or feeling like I can barely walk, but I'll miss the feeling of having my daughter growing inside me."

"We understand." Stefan assured her.

In town

8:01 A.M.

"And here's your money." Damon said as he handed the clerk the cash.

"And here's the turkey," the female clerk said as she handed him a white cardboard box, "Now Damon baby, you tell that wife of yours to come around more often, you hear me?"

"Will do Brenda." Damon smiled at her before taking the box.

Damon turned around to leave and froze. Standing right behind him and looking as shell-shocked as him, Elena, Alaric, and Jeremy stared at him in shock. There was an awkward, stunned silence between them before Damon cleared his throat.

"Well…this awkward." Damon cracked and the other three Supernaturals chuckled weakly.

"How you been Damon?" Alaric asked as he approached his friend.

"I've been good Ric," Damon said as the two shared a quick, one armed embrace, "sorry I haven't been around since I dropped my psychotic employer."

"It's okay; I figure you've had a lot on your mind," Alaric told his friend as they stepped back from each other, "so how is everyone?"

"Well Brooke is obsessing over dinner, Stefan and Luna are getting along better than they have in decades, and Peyton seems to have overcome her morning sickness," Damon told him, ignoring Elena's pained wince at the mention of his wife, "Good to see you Little Gilbert."

"You to, preferably without a gun aimed at me." Jeremy quipped good-naturally.

"Sorry about that Jer." Damon apologized but Jeremy waved it off.

"You were trying to protect someone you love; I would've done the same thing." Jeremy assured him.

"Well then… I guess I'll see you guys later." Damon said before he walked passed them.

As Damon walked passed them, Elena hesitated before mumbling an excuse to Alaric and Jeremy and turning around. Elena, at human speed, sprinted after Damon as the older Vampire walked out the door. She ran out the door and spotted him walking to his car.

"Damon!" Elena called out as she raced towards him.

Damon, having just reached his car, stopped when he heard Elena's voice. Damon put the turkey on the roof of his car before he turned around to face Elena. Elena reached him and was caught off guard by his expression. She had expected coldness, maybe anger, but instead he had that blank expression that he had worn during his time working for Julian. It unnerved her more than if he would have glared at her.

"Brooke is waiting on this Turkey Elena, what can I help you with?" Damon asked her impatiently.

"Look, you said you needed space to figure out how to be a father before you could be a boyfriend or husband, but it's been two months. How long are you going to be mad at me?" Elena demanded a little of her own anger entering her voice.

"I'm not angry with you Elena, not anymore anyway," Damon added after he saw her incredulous face, "after a few dozen sparring sessions with Enzo and Stefan where I beat the crap out of both them, I got all that out of my system. I'm not angry, I'm hurt…that's the problem."

"What?" Elena asked confused.

"Our entire relationship and the year and a half leading up to it is just this vicious cycle. You hurt me, we get back together, we don't talk about it. I get hurt again, we get back together again, and we don't talk about it. I'm always the one who ends up hurt in this relationship and you always make sure everyone else is apologized to but me. This isn't some form of revenge for all the times you've hurt me, but my situation has changed. In four months, I'll have a daughter to consider. I don't want my daughter exposed to that kind of relationship, to grow up thinking that it's okay to treat someone you love like that."

"I love you Damon, and I never meant to hurt you." Elena tells him tears welling in her eyes at the truth of his words.

"I know you didn't and I still love you as much as did the day we drove into The Grill, but this isn't working anymore. I don't this kind of relationship for my daughter…or for me." Damon finally admitted.

"Then what do you want?" Elena asked softly as she felt as though her heart was physically breaking.

Damon opened his mouth to answer when he looked over her shoulder at something. Curious at what he saw, Elena moved to look but a subtle hand gesture from Damon stopped her. Elena noticed that he had visibly tensed; he was on his guard, like he was sizing up the enemy.

"Just keep talking, pretend like we're still arguing." Damon said in a low voice as he looked back at her.

"What is it?" Elena asked dreading the answer.

"I think we're being watched…and not by your brother and Ric." Damon warned her in a low voice.

As if to confirm his theory, Damon heard a gun go off and something lodge itself in his neck. Damon hissed as he felt Vervain entering his system and Elena hissed in pain as a tranquilizer dart lodge itself in her neck. Disorientated, both Vampires fell to the ground and lost consciousness.

Brooke's house

8:17 A.M.

"Oh it's just you." Stefan deadpanned as he opened the door to see Enzo standing there with a pie pan covered by aluminum foil in hand.

"Hello to you to sunshine." Enzo said dryly as he walked inside.

"Just drop it in the kitchen and get out of there. Brooke's in one of her moods." Stefan explained at Enzo's look.

"Enough said," Enzo nodded as the doorbell went off, "you might want to get that."

"Really, wow. I never would have figured that out by myself." Stefan said sarcastically before opening the door again and promptly froze.

Standing on the other side of the door was probably the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She was a Caucasian girl who looked around seventeen or eighteen. She had mid-back length, curly blonde hair and blue eyes so bright that Stefan almost mistook them for pools of water. She was wearing a white top under a black jacket, blue jeans, and a pair of black high heels.

"Um, hey I'm Lydia, Lydia Scott. My family and I could use some help with our bags." Lydia said as she gestured towards the parking lot where Sam was seen getting out of the car with a blonde haired boy, and a dark haired man with the same blue eyes as her and a woman with the same blonde hair as her.

"Sure, I'll help." Stefan said coming out of his daze and following her out to the driveway.

"Hey, I just want to thank you helping my family with our bags. Chivalry is so hard to find now days, I'm Haley." The woman said as soon as Lydia and Stefan reached the car.

"I'm Stefan; it's nice to meet you Haley." Stefan said as he took Haley's hand.

"So your Damon's brother," the dark haired man said as he handed Stefan a duffle bag, "I'm Nathan, but you can call me Nate."

"And I'm Jamie," The blonde haired boy, who was more like a young man a little older than Elena and Caroline, said as held out his hand for Stefan to shake.

After the introductions had been made, Stefan, Jamie, and Nathan managed to grab all the bags and suitcases before they managed to make it up the steps. The group entered the house and walked into the living room to see Lena and Peyton talking. At which point Nathan dropped his bags to the floor, which drew the female's attention.

"My god, it's true." Haley breathed as neither of them had really believed it until they had seen Peyton with their own eyes.

"Nathan, Hales." Peyton said softly as, with Luna's assistance, she stood up.

"Stop talking Sawyer, just stop talking." Nathan said in an emotional voice as he and Haley walk over and embrace the pregnant young woman who hadn't aged a day since they last saw her fifteen years ago.

Armored car

8:51 A.M.

Damon, feeling weakened by the Vervain, groaned as he opened his eyes. He saw Elena's unmoving form in front of him and it all came back to him. Damon reached into his pocket for his phone to call for help, but he immediately realized that they had taken his phone. Growling in frustration, Damon Reached over and started shaking Elena.

"Elena, you need to wake up, this is no time for you to be sleeping!" Damon barked.

Elena groaned in pain as she woke up, her vision disoriented for a moment before it focuses. She calms slightly once she realizes Damon is there with her, but it is a short relief. Elena sits up and they look around, trying to figure out who has them and where they are being taken.

"Vampire Hunters?" Elena suggests but Damon shakes his head.

"Doubtful, Vampire hunters would have made sure we never regained consciousness. Besides, Vampire Hunters are sloppy, but this? No, this was well planned. And I think I was the target." Damon said as his mind raced.

"What, why?" Elena asked stunned.

"Because they struck just after I walked out of the store. If they were after you, they would've struck when you walked into the store, but they waited until you were alone with me. Of course, they might know that Ric is an Original and weren't sure they could take him down with Vervain." Damon mused as an afterthought.

"What do you think they want?" Elena asked trying to see where this was headed.

"I don't know, but it's definitely not an invitation to Thanksgiving." Damon quipped and Elena couldn't help the slight smile that graced her face.

Suddenly, the car shuts off and both Vampires tense as the wait to see what happens now. They hear footsteps come around to the back and the doors of the back are pulled open. Two men wearing ski masks stood outside, both holding a black cloth that they obviously intended to cover the heads of Damon and Elena.

"Our leader wishes to speak with you, but his secrecy is adamant." The man on the left says tonelessly.

"Like Hell!" Elena moves to attack but Damon grabs her arm and pulls her back almost effortlessly.

"Think Elena, we're both weak because of the Vervain. Whoever this guy is, he wants us alive. Go along with this until I say so. If you prove that you can't, I will leave you here because I can always come back for you." Damon warns her in a whisper before releasing her.

The two step out of the car, almost immediately the bags are shoved over their heads before they can so much as turn their heads. As they are lead to their destination, the Vampires hear two large, probably metal, doors open and close behind them before the bags are taken off their heads. They are in a dark corridor that is barely lit by candles but that is no problem for the Vampires. However, it is not his location that has Damon's attention, but the man standing in front of him. Dressed in a suit like a certain Original would wear is an aging, dark haired man. He had black hair streaked with grey with a small beared to match and bright blue eyes only slightly darker than Damon's, Damon sees a man he had not seen if fifteen years and had never wanted to see again.

"Hello Damon." The man greets politely.

"Dan." Damon breaths in stunned anger.

"Perhaps we should talk in my office?" Dan suggests as he gestures to a door not far from them.

Damon, shoulders rigged, followed silently. Elena, confused and slightly frightened that the man could get such a reaction out of Damon, wisely follows behind him. Dan leads them into an office that Damon imagines a high school principle would have. Dan sits behind a desk and gestures for the two Vampires to sit in the two chairs in front of his desk, but both remained standing.

"So, are you going to introduce us Damon?" Dan asks as he eyes Elena in a way that makes Damon want to snap his neck.

"Dan, this is Elena Gilbert. Elena, this is Dan Scott, the most vile son of a Bitch to walk the earth aside from Julian." Damon told her hate coloring his voice.

"That's a little harsh Damon don't you think?" Dan asked seeming hurt.

"Cut the crap Dan and tell me why you brought me here." Damon told him in an icy voice.

"I'm here to offer you a deal," Dan said and Damon looked at him incredulously, "you see, you killing Julian has forced me to exact my plans on my own."

"Now it all makes sense," Damon interrupts as clarity settled on him, "Julian was a psychopath, but he had no Coven, I never understood where he could have heard the story of Kronos. But now it all fits: Julian wasn't the mastermind behind it all, you are."

"Indeed, now here me out son, because I'll keep this simple: if you and your friends stay out of my way, I'll allow the ones you love to live." Dan promised and Damon barely resisted the urge to scoff.

"You honestly expect me to believe that? And even if I did, you can't start a Supernatural Armageddon without hurting my loved ones." Damn sneered.

"If you don't agree, I will kill them all starting with your lovely wife." Dan said and Damon snarled as his true face appeared.

"YOU STAY AWAY FROM PEYTON OR I WILL KILL YOU AND EVERYONE YOU HAVE EVER MET!" Damon roared and Elena almost leapt back in fear.

"I don't doubt that you would," Dan says seemingly unaffected by Damon's outburst, "but you have bigger problems."

"What are you talking about and don't give me any mind games." Damon hisses itching to stick his fangs in Dan's neck.

"Your group of friends has been…compromised; one of them is a mole." Dan reveals.

"A mole?" Damon repeats as his mind try's to refute this.

"A Mole: a rat, a spy. More specifically, a spy that's been working for me." Dan explains.

The world tilted on its axis. Right was left, up was down, and Damon almost fell to his knees. Was it possible that someone Damon had trusted for years…had been playing him. No…it wasn't possible…it just wasn't possible, it couldn't be.

"I-I don't believe you." Damon told him desperately clinging to the denial.

"Oh, I think you do," Dan smirked at the broken look in his eyes, "Someone you have trusted for years now is a traitor."

"Shut up!" Damon shouted trying to block out the madman's voice with his own ears.

"Deep down, you know I'm telling the truth," Dan told him as if he hadn't been interrupted, "what you do with this information is entirely up to do. Now, I will give you twenty four hours to think about this deal. Your families have received texts that state that you and Elena are talking somewhere, about where the two of you stand. I would suggest you take it, because if you don't I will kill them all. Peyton, Stefan, Luna, everyone who ever meant something to you. If you value their lives, you will take the deal."

Armored car, on its way back to town

9: 38 A.M.

Damon and Elena sit on opposite ends of the car, both completely silent. Damon had not said a word once they had got back to the car and was once again wearing that blank expression that Elena was beginning to realize he wore when he was going through deep emotional pain. Damon sat completely still, almost as if he was a statue. Elena was beginning to get worried about him when he finally spoke, making her jump because he hadn't spoken in so long.

"When we get back…I need you not to say anything to anyone about what really happened today." Damon told her tonelessly.

"You can't be serious." Elena said in disbelief.

"Elena, if what Dan says is true, and I'm not saying it is, then someone within our ranks…is a traitor. Now, to do this while gaining my trust…that takes a certain type of sociopath, because you know I don't trust easily. You cannot trust anyone with this information until I say otherwise." Damon told her sternly.

"Damon, what if this is all just a mind game to get us to turn on our friends?" Elena suggested but Damon shook his head.

"That's a possibility, a likely one, but we can't take that risk. If we're wrong and this isn't a mind game, then we risk alerting the mole. I can't risk that with someone so close to my family." Damon told her and Elena nodded reluctantly.

"Do you have any ideas about who it is?" Elena asked him curiously and Damon nodded solemnly.

"Ever since Dan told me, I've been examining everything our friends have said or done. I've narrowed it down to three suspects: Sam, Enzo…and Alaric." Damon admitted that last reluctantly and Elena gaped at him like he had told her Katherine wasn't dead.

"Are you really kidding me?! He's your best friend!" Elena shouted at him and he winced before looking at her again.

"But he also came to town to kill me," Damon reminded her and Elena stood tall, not wanting to believe it, "what if this entire time, he's just been playing me, been playing us all? It's pretty far-fetched that he would continue to do this after he died, I know, but what if Dan somehow knew about the spell to bring someone back? What if he knew that I would end up at that moment where the other side would go down?" Damon proposed to her and Elena shook her head, refusing to believe.

"In order to do that, he would need to see the future Damon!" Elena tried to reason with him but he only looked at her imploringly.

"A few years ago, I didn't believe in Werewolves or the Originals. Elena, what if he can see the future?" Damon asked her and Elena froze, not wanting to consider the possibility.

"Dan…who exactly is this guy?" Elena asked him wondering just who he was.

"He's the most powerful Witch I've ever encountered after Silas, Qetsiyah, and Esther. He spent the majority of Peyton and Brooke's high school career terrorizing them and their friends, which included his own two sons and daughter-in-law. He went to jail on their graduation day for executing his own brother. Elena, anyone who can kill his own brother has no soul, there is no telling what Dan will do if we get in his way. If he says that we have a traitor in our midst, then we do." Damon said in a firm voice.

"Then what are we supposed to do then, do nothing?" Elena asks frustration leaking into her voice.

"What we do, is being careful," Damon told her in a soothing voice, "Elena, when you get home tonight, tries and check out Alaric, Look into him while I look into Enzo and Sam. Meanwhile, the two of us need to build a team, a circle of trust of the people we can trust absolutely."

"God, I never thought that we would need to look over our shoulder at the people we love." Elena said in a voice thick with emotion as she sat down and put her face in her hands.

"This isn't any easier for me Elena," Damon told her as he sighed, "I thought I was finally in a place where I could trust the people around me. But it looks like I'll never be in that place. We need to look at this objectively Elena, no personal feelings we may have can cloud our judgement."

"On that subject," Elena began hesitantly and Damon looked at her curiously, "I know this may sound like I'm being the jealous girlfriend, but it's not. Is it possible…that in those fifteen years, Julian used some sort of brainwashing on Peyton and she's the mole?"

"No, it's not," Damon denied immediately, "I would've noticed if anything was different about her and even if I didn't, Brooke and Luna would've. It's not Peyton, I've already considered the possibility and dismissed her, it's not her."

"And you're sure it has to be these three?" Elena asked for clarification.

"The only opportunity Dan or Julian would've had to turn your brother is when he was on the Other Side, Bonnie would never work for a Psychopath like Dan, and While Blondie certainly has it out for me, she wouldn't work for someone like Dan, she's too judge mental for that. Busboy and wolf boy are out, their useless to him now, so if they were the mole they would be dead, or at least Donavan would be while Wolf boy would've had his curse forcibly triggered by Dan. Brooke would never work for Dan, not after everything, and Luna is too loyal to me and Peyton to even consider it. Finally, while Stefan can, at times, be a hypocrite and a terrible excuse for a brother, he would never side with someone like Dan when he knew they would try and kill me, not even if he was Ripper Stefan." Damon informed her and Elena nodded in understanding.

The car suddenly stopped and the two Vampires waited for the drivers to reach the back of the car. The back doors opened and their two captors stood there, one holding a white, cardboard box identical to the one Damon had purchased earlier this morning. Once they exited the car, Damon was handed the box, at which he raised an eyebrow.

"Inside is a turkey, exactly like the one you purchased earlier morning. Don't worry, it's not poisonous." The man said with a sick grin.

Damon and Elena ignored him and walked away. Towards their respective homes….all the while, knowing that one of their loved ones could be working for the enemy. A thought that weighed heavily on their hearts and minds.

 **So, what do you guys think of this plot twist? Leave any and all thoughts or comments you may have in a review.**


	10. Family secrets

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

 **So, before you start reading, I'm just gonna say this is not one of my best chapters. It's more of a transition chapter than anything; it doesn't really contribute anything to the plot until the last two pages. The main plot was given to me by Dante 101, so thanks for the idea.**

Brooke's house, November 28th

7:35 A.M.

"Hey, what are you making?" Peyton asked as she walked into the kitchen to see her husband mixing something in a mixer bowl.

"Pancakes." Damon told her simply.

"My favorite," Peyton smiled before it turned into a concerned frown, "what's bothering you?"

"What makes you think something's bothering me?" Damon asked avoiding her eyes.

"Damon," Peyton took his head in her hands and forced him to look at her, "I know everything about you; we have no secrets between us remember? The worst thing you've ever done, the darkest thought you've ever had, all the pain and suffering you've endured. I know everything Damon, the good and the bad, and I still love you. Tell me what's bothering you."

"Yesterday," Damon began before pausing, "I didn't send that text. Elena and I were arguing in front of the Deli when we got jumped and when we woke up, we were in the back of an armored car. The guys who took us brought us to their boss…it was Dan. Peyton, Dan is who Julian was working for; he's been behind this whole thing from the start."

"Why didn't you tell us this yesterday?" Peyton asked knowing that Damon had a reason for keeping this to himself.

"Because of what Dan told me. I'm not sure if he's playing mind games or not, but Dan said that he has a spy lurking among of group of allies." Damon told her and Peyton's hands slide from his face as horror and shock settled in.

"That's…not possible." Peyton said not wanting to believe it.

"Dan wants to start a supernatural Armageddon; we can't afford to not take this seriously." Damon told her grimly.

Peyton opened her mouth to reply when Damon held up a hand and shook his head, telling her to be quiet. Peyton was angry, assuming that he was ending the argument until she heard footsteps. She looked over her shoulder to see Stefan walk into the kitchen, looking like he was about to get married. That is to say, he looked extremely nervous about something.

"Um, Damon can we talk?" Stefan asked his voice sounding rather unsure.

"Sure, what is it?" Damon asked wondering what had his brother so worked up.

"Privately?" Stefan asked with a pointed look at Peyton.

"Sure, let's head out on the patio," Damon suggested as he pointed to a glass door that showed a wooden patio, "Brooke sound proofed it, no one will hear us. But can I talk to Peyton for a minute?"

"Sure, I'll be out on the patio." Stefan nodded and Damon waited until the glass door closed behind his brother before turning to Peyton.

"We need to keep his between us for now. If there is a mole, and I'm not completely convinced there is one, then we cannot afford to be talking about this where anyone can hear us." Damon told her pointedly.

"I don't like keeping secrets from the people I love." Peyton said frustration in her voice.

"I know, but we have to if we're going to root out the spy." Damon told her before kissing her on the forehead and heading out to the patio.

"Everything okay with you and Peyton?" Stefan asked having seen there exchange.

"Yeah, everything's fine, what did you want to talk about?" Damon inquired and Stefan drew in a shaky breath.

"Damon, this is really hard for me to say so please don't interrupt okay?" Stefan pleaded and Damon, though confused, nodded, "it's about what happened with Gail."

"I know I promised I wouldn't say anything, but Stefan, why are you doing this to me? You how guilty I feel about that." Damon pointed out hurt.

"I'm trying to absolve you of some of that guilt," Stefan told him and Damon quieted, "after you…took off, Zack and I took her to the hospital."

"Hey, what's going on Aunt Peyton?" Lydia asked as she walked into the kitchen.

"Well, your uncle and Stefan are talking about something." Peyton explained, smiling slightly when she saw Lydia blush slightly at the mention of the younger Salvatore.

"About what?" Lydia tried-and failed-to ask casually.

"I don't know, but it doesn't look good." Peyton watched nervously as Damon's expression change from confusion to shock and slight anger.

"And that's the whole story," Stefan finished and waited nervously for Damon to respond, "Damon?"

"What's her name?" Damon asked tonelessly after several tense moments.

"Sarah, Sarah Nelson. She started at Duke University in September." Stefan told him his nerves not vanishing at all.

"Okay." Damon said before he punched Stefan.

Stefan went down and Peyton blinked in surprise as Lydia yelped in shock. Stefan groaned in pain as Damon stalked over to the door angrily and walked back inside. He was in and out of the kitchen before either blonde could say a word. Lydia sprinted out the door as Peyton heard Damon angrily slam the front door behind him.

"Are you okay?" Lydia asked she sat him up.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Stefan assured her as Peyton walked outside.

"You want to explain what the hell that was about?" Peyton demanded crossly as she crossed her arms.

"It's kind of complicated, but he did take it better than I expected," Stefan assured them and they gave him imploring looks, "I expected him to snap my neck before throwing me over the side of the patio."

Out front, Damon almost tore off the driver's side door of his black Volvo before getting inside. He angrily slammed it shut before starting it and peeling out of the driveway. At a speed that far exceeded the speed limit, Damon headed out with one destination in mind: Duke.

Virginia airport

8:15 A.M.

"Yeah, I need a flight to North Carolina." Damon told her rudely.

Brooke's house

8:25 A.M.

"So let me get this straight," Luna asked rubbing her temples as everyone stared at Stefan in stunned silence, "about three years before Damon and I arrived in Tree Hill, you two were living in Mystic Falls with Zach and his pregnant girlfriend. Due to some less than moral behavior on our then-humanityless brother, you snap his neck, take his Daylight ring, and lock him in the shed out back. Damon gets out and goes on rampage, slaughtering a whole bunch of people, including said pregnant girlfriend. For the past eighteen years, Damon has believed that he killed that child, letting it eat away at him, yet today, you decided to tell him that you've kept secret the fact that the baby has been alive the whole time. You decided this was a good idea…why?"

"I just didn't want to keep any more secrets from him." Stefan said, no one noticing Peyton's flinch at the wording.

"I get that Stefan, I really do, but he was in a good place for the first time in a long time, maybe for the first time since that day Julian made us think that Peyton died," Luna said frustrated with him before turning to Peyton apologetically, "I'm sorry about this Peyton…I'm sorry you have to find out about the person my brother was before he met you."

"I already knew," Peyton confessed softly and everyone gapped at her, "Obviously I didn't know about the baby being alive, but the rest…Damon told me a long time ago."

"He told you?" Stefan asked in disbelief.

"He told me a month after we first started dating. He said that he didn't want to have secrets between us, but I think that he was really trying to scared me off because he was afraid of how strong his feeling for me were," Peyton mused before looking at everyone, "I'd be lying if I said I was okay with it, but I saw how remorseful he was about it, how much it ate away at him. He had done bad things and he believed he was bad, but…there was good in him, I saw the version of himself he wished he could be, who I knew he could be. I think that was the first moment I knew I loved him."

"Back on topic, where do you think he's gone?" Nathan asked and no one had an answer.

Duke University

12:17 P.M.

Damon stood in the parking lot out of sight of most students. He watched Sarah talking, laughing with her friends. He had spent all day watching her, she had mostly Gail's features, but Damon could also see Zach in her. She was an art major, Damon had learned by observing her. She liked photography, she was kind, smart, and had a lot of integrity. She was good, she had a good life.

"Checking up on me?" Damon asked as someone stepped up beside him.

"Well Luna wanted to drag you back home, but I convinced her that you and I need to talk," Stefan told him as they both watched Sarah, "so what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that you did the right thing," Damon said as he looked over at her, "you made sure she got a good life…I just wish you had told me this sooner instead of keeping it from me for all these years."

"I told myself that I was protecting her," Stefan began avoiding his brother's gaze, "but really, I just wanted to spite you, to make you suffer as much as you made me suffer when you send me off the rails in 1912. Forgive me."

"You're the only brother I got, how can I not?" Damon asked joking as he slung an arm over Stefan's shoulder, "there's a café not far from here, let's go have a lunch. And…there's something I need to tell you."

Café near Duke

12:45 P.M.

"So…there's a traitor among our group of allies?" Stefan asked as though testing it on his lips.

"Possibly, yes." Damon said gently.

"Who is this Dan guy anyway?" Stefan asked.

"Nathan's father who's a slightly more evil version of our father with Witch powers. His crimes include walking out on Nate's Half-brother before he was born, trying to break up Nate and Haley's marriage, abuse of his power of Mayor of Tree Hill, and walking inside a school during a shooting to kill his brother, under the impression that the brother tried to kill him." Damon listed darkly.

"And you believe him?" Stefan asked in disbelief.

"No, but dismissing this would be stupider than Elena giving Esther her blood until we're completely sure that there is no mole. Right now, we need to keep this between you, me, and Peyton until we've routed out every possibility," Damon told him before smirking at his brother, "On to a less depressing topic, you and Lydia."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Stefan said blushing.

"You two were making googly eyes at each other all through dinner last night." Damon laughed at his brother face.

"If I did, hypothetically, like her, what would you say?" Stefan asked his brother nervously.

"I'd say you need something good in your life. If that's Lydia, go for it. But hurt her, they will never find your body." Damon growled that last part.

"You need something good in your life to and you know what I'm talking about Damon." Stefan told his brother pointedly and Damon tensed.

"Drop it Stef." Damon warned in a low voice.

"You don't want to talk about it, fine, just listen then. I've seen the way you look at Peyton and I've never seen you look at someone with so much love in your eyes Damon. Not mother, not Luna, not Katherine," Stefan paused before speaking again, "not even Elena."

"I don't have time to consider my romantic options when Dan is looming over our heads Stefan," Damon snapped before his phone started ringing and Damon angrily pulled it out, "What?!"

"No need to sound so testy Damon." A voice that made Damon's blood boil said tauntingly.

"Speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear," Damon told Stefan grimly before turning his attention back to the caller, "what do you want Dan?"

"What I want is to know whether you considered my offer?" Dan told him curiously.

"I considered it…and I decided that you can go screw yourself. What made you think that I would trust you for even a second, you psychotic son of a bitch?" Damon asked honestly a little curious.

"I figured you would respond a little like this, so I'm to give a peace offering before you make your final decision." Dan told him and Damon and Stefan exchanged an uneasy glance.

"What's that, your own execution?" Damon asked snarkily.

"No, I'm going to give you your town back." Dan told him before hanging up.

On the other side of the line, standing just outside of the Mystic Falls border, Dan smirked before he began. Dan got on his knees and placed his hands flat on the ground, positioning them so that the tips of his fingers made contact with the barrier. Dan closed his eyes before he began to chant in Latin.

In town, everything began to shake. The people began to panic, thinking it was an earthquake. But those in the know like Liz, Matt, and Jeremy noticed that it was unusually windy for an earthquake. Moreover, the wind seemed to not be blowing, but sucking as though the air was being sucked into a giant vacuum. And then, like a switch went off, it all stopped. In an instant it had happened and in an instant it had stopped. Over the town line, Dan stood up before turning around and walking away.

Mystic Falls border

2:30 P.M.

The Salvatore Brothers stood on one side of the border while Liz, Matt, and Tyler Jeremy stood on the other. All of them exchanged uneasy glances before Damon stepped forward. All them held their breath nervously, Stefan having to restrain himself from stopping Damon from what he was about to do. Damon hesitated briefly before walking over the town line and…nothing. His daylight ring was still fully functional, he wasn't reliving his human death, and he was in no pain whatsoever. There was only one conclusion to draw from this.

"It's gone, the Anti-Magic spell the travelers cast is gone." Damon breathed stunned as everyone starred shocked at what this meant.

"How is that possible, Caroline has been searching for a way to get rid of it for months and no someone comes along and just does it for no reason?" Matt asked bewildered.

"I wouldn't say for no reason," Damon said and everyone looked back at him, "I got a call from an old enemy today, he was trying to make an alliance with me. He told me that, as a peace offering, he would give me back my town. It's called the Absorption spell, only members of his family are able to cast it."

"Can we trust this guy?" Jeremy asked already knowing the answer.

"Of course we can't trust him Little Gilbert; it's called the Absorption spell for a reason. It doesn't make the magic disappear; it adds it to the Witch casting the spell. He can put whatever spin he wants on it, but he just got a major power boost." Damon told them grimly.

Salvatore Boarding house

3:45 P.M.

"It's good to be home." Damon announced as all four members of the Salvatore family, plus the Scotts, Brook, Sam, and her daughter walked through the doors.

"Nice place you got." Nathan mentioned as he looked around as Sam froze as she saw a certain picture.

"Um, Jamie, Lydia, could you take my daughter to the kitchen?" Sam asked and everyone but the child in question caught the catch in Sam's voice.

"Sure Sam, let's go L. Hales." Lydia said in a soothing voice as she took the young girl's hand as Stefan gave Jamie directions to the area.

"Damon, who is that in the picture with you?" Sam demanded once they were gone and Damon looked at which picture she was talking about.

"That's Richard Lockwood; he was Tyler's father and Mayor of Mystic Falls when Stefan and I first came back to town but he died in a botch attempt by Elena's birth parents to eradicate the Vampire population in town. Why?" Damon asked suspicion creeping up on him.

"Because that's my little girl's father." Sam said in a quivering voice and no could come up with a response.

 **So, what do you think? Leave any thoughts or comments in a review or PM me.**


	11. The one he loves most

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Salvatore Boarding house, December 28th

8:21 A.M.

"Okay, now that breakfast is on the table, maybe we can talk strategy?" Luna asked as she and her brothers sat around the kitchen table.

"Well, problem number one, and perhaps the most important: Dan claims that a mole is someone in our ranks. The big question though is whether or not Dan is playing mind games, messing with our heads." Damon mused.

"If he is telling the truth, are we sure we've ruled out everyone else?" Stefan asked concerned that they were overthinking things.

"I've ruled out everyone but Alaric, Enzo, and Sam." Damon insisted stubbornly.

"So let's start with suspect number one: Sam." Luna suggested.

"Okay then, why is she a suspect?" Stefan asked and both waited for their older brother speak.

"Because she was working for Julian," Damon began after a moments pause, "sure, she was being blackmailed with her daughter's safety, but what if that was just an elaborate set up by Dan and Sam? And where has Sam been for the last fifteen years? Where did she learn magic, because she clearly didn't tap into it while she was living with Brooke and there's no way she learned from Julian, she's obviously no beginner."

"So, suspect number two: Enzo." Luna prompted after Damon paused.

"Enzo has the most reason to hate me: I left him to burn in the fires of Augustine after I shut off my humanity. Enzo spent another fifty five years being tortured by Augustine, it's not that much of a stretch to think that at some point, Dan got in contact with Enzo and turned him to his side." Damon pointed out.

"And for Alaric, there's the whole Isobel thing." Stefan mentioned and Damon nodded.

"That's assuming that I'm not wrong and it's one of those three. We need to be careful, so for cautions sake, everyone but Peyton, Brooke, and the Scotts are our enemies. Understood?" Damon asked and was pleased to see his siblings nod.

"Why do you think Dan hasn't made a move yet?" Stefan asked curiously and Damon chuckled humorlessly.

"Isn't it obvious? He's hoping we'll all turn on each other," Damon said and then decided to elaborate after seeing their blank expressions, "he's sown the seed of mistrust and now he's waiting for that seed to grow into a bomb that will take out our groups, leaving us all fractured while Dan swoops in and destroys us."

"How'd you come to that conclusion?" Luna asked surprised at Damon's insight.

"Because it's what Klaus did. He didn't come right away for Elena; he waited while desperation, jealousy, and fear turned Stefan and me against each another because the others were easy pickings compared to us. It was Stefan and I that were the real threat to Klaus' plans." Damon explained calmly.

"So, time to root out the mole." Luna mentioned and both brothers nodded.

"Luna, you head over to Brooke's house for Peyton's baby shower. Question Sam; see if you can get anything out of her," Damon ordered before turning to Stefan, "Stefan, you go spend the Enzo. Tell him you're trying to mend fences or trying to get to know him, but spend some time with him."

"And you?" Luna spoke for both of them.

"I am going to a little bar near Whitmore to spend some time with my drinking buddy." Damon told them with a smirk and no more words were said before breakfast was finished.

Brooke's house

9:17 A.M.

"Hey sister, how's it going?" Luna asked Peyton as she walked into her pregnant in-law's room where Peyton was sitting on her bed reading a book.

"Fine, I was just…reminiscing." Peyton said softly and Luna saw that it was a scrapbook of Damon and Peyton that Peyton was looking at.

"You know…he loves you, he loves you more than anything." Luna said softly.

"He hasn't made any moves since we slept together in Julian's captivity." Peyton said sourly.

"He's been making plans, trying to figure out how to guess which one of our friends is the mole. He hasn't had time to figure out his feelings, but he does love you." Luna assured her.

Someone coughed behind them and both women turned around to see Sam standing in the doorway. Luna's good mood plummeted as she remembered why she was truly there today. Sam had always been a friend, Luna still remembered Sam as the wounded fifteen year old girl that reminded her so much of a younger version of Luna herself. It was difficult for Luna to imagine that Sam could be a potential enemy, but like Damon, Luna had to consider it.

"Luna, we have a situation downstairs." Sam warned her.

Luna nodded and, with an apologetic glance towards Peyton, the Witch and Vampire exited the room. They walked down the stairs and towards the front door where Luna saw the problem. Brooke, looking none too pleased, stood inside the house as she glared at Elena, who stood outside the door. Giving Brooke a look, Luna walked towards the younger Vampire as Brooke and Sam walked away. Luna crossed her arms and leaned casually against the wall, reminding Elena of the elder Salvatore brother heavily.

"What are you doing here Elena; you know that you're not welcome here?" Luna asked not unkindly yet not friendly either.

"I came to make peace with Peyton," Elena said to Luna great surprise, "look, regardless of what happens between me and Damon or Damon and Peyton, I'd like to not to make an enemy where I don't see one."

"Well, Peyton might take this seriously, even be touched by it if weren't for one thing: you're still besties with the girl with a major vendetta against the father of her child." Luna said dispassionately.

"Caroline is not your enemy." Elena defended and Luna rolled her eyes.

"She's certainly not a friend, or have you forgotten how she tried to enact a plan that would've most likely gotten Peyton and the baby killed? I haven't, Damon hasn't, and Stefan certainly hasn't," Luna scoffed as Elena looked confused by that last bit, "why do you think Stefan hasn't spoken to her in months? He is disgusted by what she tried to do, all out of hatred for our brother. Look Elena, battle lines are being drawn, on and off the battlefield. You can side with my brothers, or you can side with Caroline, but let me make one thing clear: you can't side with them both, not anymore. It's time for you to make a choice."

With that said, Luna slammed the door in the Doppelganger's face.

Bar near Whitmore

9:45 A.M.

"We should do this more often, when was the last time we did this?" Alaric asked as he and Damon set their drinks down.

"Probably before you went all crazy and homicidal." Damon said nonchalantly and Alaric grimaced at the reminder.

"So, we haven't really had a chance to talk about everything since you've been back. How have you been dealing with everything that's happened?" Alaric asked his friend.

"I'm good, I'm really good," Damon shrugged before continuing, "When I lost Peyton, something in me just…shattered. Nothing, not even Elena's love, could heal that wound. Even with her back, I'm not the same Damon that I was when I married her. But the baby…it's probably the best thing to ever happen to me."

"Good for you Damon." Alaric smiled at his friend.

"So I wanted to talk to you about something," Damon began casually, too casually, "Stefan's talking to me about forgiveness, he thinks I should forgive Blondie for what she tried to do to Peyton, for my sake if not for hers but I'm not sure I can. How'd you forgive me for Isobel? I mean, I slept with your wife and turned her into a Vampire, it's just about one of the worst things a guy can do, how'd you do it?"

As Damon talked, Alaric noticed his tone had turned less casual and more suspicious, almost accusing. Alaric was beginning to grow bewildered by his friend's behavior, what was going on with Damon? Suddenly, Alaric began to grow suspicious of why Damon had really called him here. Damon had been increasingly distant with his friends from Mystic Falls since escaping Julian's thumb, so why was he reaching out now?

"What's really going on here Damon?" Alaric asked a slight edge to his voice.

"I'm just a father-to-be, looking for advice on how to be a better man, a better father, from my best friend." Damon said innocently, which didn't fool Alaric for a minute.

"And I know you well enough to know that you're hiding something. When you feel like sharing it, you know where to find me." Alaric said bitterly before he stood up and walked away.

Damon put his hand to his chin as he stared ahead thoughtfully. Damon had done that as a test: either Alaric wasn't the mole, or he was a very talented actor. Either way, Damon had some serious making up to do with him. Someone sat down next to him and Damon turned to look at his new drinking buddy.

"Well, that didn't look good." Nathan told him casually.

"Well, sometimes friends fight." Damon said dismissively but Nathan simply snorted in response.

"Yeah and I guess it's only a coincidence that you've been distant with just about everyone, Peyton's more moody than a pregnant woman should be, Luna's unusually tense, and the only time your brother relaxes is when he's in the company of my daughter." Nathan said scowling at the mention of Lydia.

"Is that scorn I hear?" Damon teased.

"My disapproval of Stefan's feelings for Lydia has nothing to do with this. Something's going on with your family Damon; tell me, maybe I can help. Come on, we've been friends for fifteen years. If you can't trust me, who can you trust?"

Brooke's house

9:51 A.M.

"So, where did you learn magic?" Luna asked Sam casually as they set up the presents.

"What?" Sam asked only half paying attention to her friend.

"Well, you obviously didn't learn from Brooke, so did you learn from Rebekah or someone else?" Luna inquired barely keeping the suspicion out of her voice.

"When I was in college, I met a woman named Sheila Bennett, Bonnie's Grams. When she realized that I was an untapped Witch, she offered to teach me how to realize my potential. I spent three years learning under her, I even met Bonnie at one point, but I'm not sure he remembers it, she was really young. Anyway, after I graduated, I moved to New York and I didn't hear about Sheila until Damon told me when we were both working for Julian." Sam explained scowling at the mention of the crazed Witch.

Sam was silent, keeping an eye on her Witch friend. It all sounded reasonable…too reasonable. It was a bit too much of a coincidence that Sam would run into the grandmother of the best friend of the latest Petrova Doppelganger, who both Salvatore brothers would fall in love with. There were too many variables that just happened to interlock with each other. Luna could understand where her brother was coming from and she couldn't honesty say that Damon's suspicions weren't valid.

Bar near Whitmore

10:05 A.M.

"So, my father claims that there is a mole somewhere inside our network of allies and the suspects are Sam, Enzo, and Alaric?" Nathan asked rubbing his temples as he felt a headache coming on.

"Yes and no," Damon said and Nathan tossed him a look of confused irritation, "I can't take the chance that I'm wrong about this, so everyone is a suspect but you, your family, Brooke, Stefan, Luna, and Peyton."

"You're starting to sound a little paranoid." Nathan notes with some concern.

"Well your father is trying to unleash the end of the world, so I think I'm entitled to a little paranoia." Damon growled.

"You are, but you can't alienate the people you know you can trust. Answer me this: before my dad planted this idea in your head about a mole, if I would have asked you how much you trusted Alaric, what you have said?"

"With my life and the lives of my family." Damon said without hesitation.

"Then there's your answer. If you trusted him that much, then there's no way he's working for my dad." Nathan assured him.

Before Damon could think too much on this, his cell phone went off. Pulling it out from his pocket, Damon saw it was an unfamiliar number. Frowning, Damon briefly considered declining the call but decided to answer it anyway.

"Hello?"

"Damon, so good to hear from you." Dan's smug voice made Damon's blood boil.

"What do you want Dan?" Damon sneered.

"I told you that if you didn't join me, you would suffer. You didn't head my warning, so prepare to lose the one you love most." Dan said gleefully before hanging up.

Fear floods Damon's heart as he lowered his phone, almost too stunned to move. Then his shock fades, giving way to determination and desperation and he turns to Nathan who had obviously heard everything judging by the look on his face. Without a word, the two men stood up and all but sprinted out of the bar, almost running over Stefan as the younger Salvatore was reaching the door to the bar.

"Damon," Stefan stepped back as his brother and Nathan came barreling out of the bar, "what's wrong?"

"I'll explain on the way, but we need to go now!" Damon snapped as the three of them hurried towards the parking lot.

Brooke's house

10:38 A.M.

"Thanks for all the gifts everyone." Peyton smiled at the gifts from Luna, Brooke, Sam, Haley, and Lydia.

"It was no problem P. Sawyer." Brooke assured her best friend.

"Well isn't this just adorable?"

Startled, the women turned around to see Dan walk into the room, a smug smile on his face. Luna blurred in front of the Girls with Sam and Brooke stepping by her sides soon after. Haley stood protectively in front of her daughter and Peyton, and Lydia stood there uncertainly, unsure of what to do in the face of the man who was her grandfather. Dan smiled condescendingly at them before moving his hand to one side and Luna suddenly flew to one side and was pinned to the wall.

Dan waved his hand and suddenly all humans/Witches in the room were frozen; they could not move a muscle. Dan smiled a malicious smile and walked around the others until he stood in front of Peyton. Peyton was terrified as Dan lowered his hand and caressed her cheek, as though he was her father.

"You may not believe me, but I'm sorry," Dan said sounding as though he genuinely meant it, "Perhaps if things were different, if Lucas had lived, you would never have gotten caught up in this. Perhaps I could have one day called you my daughter, but Lucas died and a different path was chosen for you. It is for that reason that I cannot bring myself to kill you…instead, I will send you to someone who will."

Dan's hand slide from Peyton's cheek and Dan said something in Latin. Three things happened and at once: the spells holding Luna and the Witches in place vanished, the front door burst open and a familiar voice cried out Peyton's name in fear and desperation, and finally, Peyton's eyes rolled back in her head as she collapsed. Dan smirked before muttering something and he was gone. But no one noticed, for their attention was on Peyton. Damon was at her side first, wrapping his arms around his wife's unmoving form. Although panicked, his expression soon changed to puzzlement.

"She seems fine, she's just unconscious." Damon said as though to himself.

"I've heard of this," Sam said and everyone turned to her, "she's not dead, not yet. Dan has sent her mind to another plane."

 _Peyton stood in a house, though it was not one she recognized. It seemed like a Victorian era house and yet it was familiar. Not familiar in the sense that she had been there before, but in the sense that it had been described to her before in graphic detail, repeatedly. She heard someone walk into the room and she turned around to see a man, but she couldn't see his face, for it was in the shadows._

" _Hey, do you know where we are, who are you?" Peyton asked and the man gave a chuckle that sent a chill down her spine._

" _I know exactly where we are and as for who I am, well, you might as well call me…father." The man said darkly as he stepped out of the shadows to reveal the face of Giuseppe Salvatore._

"Define 'another plane?'" Damon growled at the Witch.

"Dan has sent Peyton's mind to a sort of limbo, a place between life and death." Sam explained though no one seemed to understand.

"Why would he do that?" Haley asked what they were all thinking.

"He said something about not being able to kill her so he was sending her to someone who would." Luna recited.

"That's impossible unless..." Sam trailed off as her eyes widened in stunned horror.

"Unless what?!" Damon snarled snapping her out of her stunned daze.

"Unless Dan somehow made contact with the nether world and pulled a spirt to Limbo, someone he knows will kill Peyton in Limbo." Sam explained.

"But why, what's the point of that?" Lydia asked horrified about what was going on.

"Because if someone is killed in Limbo, they will simply fade from existence and their body will remain in a comatose state." Nathan said horror enveloping his body.

"How do we bring her back? I don't care what you have to do, just bring her back because I am not losing her again." Damon said steely determination filling his voice.

"I'm not sure; this is way out of our depth." Sam said sounding distressed.

"What if we overpower it?" Nathan asked causing everyone to turn, "what if you, me, and Brooke combine our magic and try to override the spell?"

"…that could work," Sam admitted after some thought, "but it would require us to have an anchor, something of great magical power."

"What about me?" Stefan asked and everyone turned to him, "I'm not just a Vampire, I'm also the last Doppelganger of Silas in existence."

"That could work." Brooke admitted.

"Stefan…" Damon trailed off unsure of what to say.

"Don't worry about it; I'll bring her back to you." Stefan assured his brother.

"I'm not just worried about her." Damon told him.

"He's right, what if something goes wrong?" Lydia pointed out worriedly but Stefan shook his head.

"We're out of time, we need to save Peyton and the baby and this is the only way to do this." Stefan said in a tone that left no room for argument.

" _You're Giuseppe Salvatore, you're Damon's father." Peyton said fearfully as she began to back away from her father-in-law but found her back against the wall._

" _Indeed," Giuseppe said causally as he picked up a wood poker and began examining it before looking back over at her, "and I see you are expecting. It's pathetic, Damon fancying himself a father when he was barley a son."_

" _you have no right to lector anyone on the virtues of fatherhood," Peyton spat angrily to which he raised an eyebrow, "beating Damon, letting Stefan blame himself for his mother's death, making Luna terrified of you at a young age, yeah you're father of the year."_

" _You know, back in my day I would've been proud of Damon for finding a woman like you to call his wife. Now however, I feel only contempt that he has managed to contaminate your DNA with his Vampiric own. That baby shall be an abomination, which is why it must be extinguished." Giuseppe said darkly as moved towards her threateningly._

 _Peyton grabs something and Giuseppe only realizes it is a large slab of wood when she swings it at him, striking him across the face. Giuseppe falls to the ground, clutching his face as Peyton flees the room._

Stefan, Brooke, Sam, and Nathan all join hands as everyone watches nervously. Damon clutches Peyton to him desperately, the part of him that is her husband hoping this works while the part of him that is Stefan's brother wanting desperately to stop his brother from doing this. The three Witches began chanting and a breeze began blowing through the house.

 _With a roar of rage, Giuseppe emerged from the room and began searching for Peyton. Peyton ran into the entrance and headed for the stairs as fast as her seven month pregnancy would allow her to but it just wasn't fast enough. Giuseppe caught up to her and swung the wood poker at her, which Peyton manages to narrowly avoid. However, maybe avoid is too strong a word as the wood poker manages to graze above her wrist._

Damon smells blood and looks down to see a small cut above Peyton's wrist. However, to his bewilderment, the cut heals almost instantly, just like it would've if it had been Damon who received the wound. However, Damon had no time to ponder this as the wind became a raging typhoon and the three Witches and his brother struggled to maintain their grip on each other.

"What's happening?" Lydia demanded worried for both Stefan and her father.

"We're not strong enough to break the spell with just Stefan as an anchor!" Nathan yelled over the winds.

 _Giuseppe throws Peyton to the ground not too gently and moves to drive the wood poker into her stomach. However, Peyton swipes him out from under his legs and the wood poker clatters next Peyton harmlessly as the man falls to the ground. Peyton picks up the wood poker and attempts to stand but Giuseppe grabs hold of the weapon and it settles into a brief tug-of-war over the wood poker._

" _Damon is a servant of the devil; do you truly expect your child to be raised properly by him?" Giuseppe sneered at her._

The link seemed to break and the four separated, Stefan and Nathan still holding on to each other with Sam and Brooke still holding on to each other. The pairs almost fell to the ground when someone grabbed Stefan and Sam's free hands, steading them. Everyone looked to see that it was Damon, lifting his head to reveal his eyes filled with a steely determination that none had seen in a long time.

"Use me to; use me as a second anchor. It'll work," Damon said before anyone could protest, "Just trust me and let's save my wife."

After a brief hesitation, Nathan and Sam joined hands and the three Witches began to chant again.

" _You think you can overpower me you Harlot?!" Giuseppe sneered as he yanked the wood poker out of Peyton's grasp, "I've returned from over a century in the grave to do this, YOU CANNOT STOP ME!"_

 _As if to contradict him, the room began to shake violently causing him to lose his grip on the wood poker. Before he could try and get it back, Peyton had already picked up and Giuseppe felt a great pain from his chest. Giuseppe realized that the pain was from the wood poker that Peyton had stabbed into his chest. Giuseppe coughed and saw blood running down his chin, to his horror. Peyton glared at him hatefully as he struggled to lift his hands, neither of them noticing the flickering of the room around them._

" _You ruined your kids, it took them a long time to be in a good place with themselves and with each other," Peyton snarled at him hatefully, "but my daughter will have two advantages that they never had. One: she will have a father that will love her unconditionally. Two: She will never, ever know you!"_

 _The room them consumed them in a bright light._

Peyton opened her eyes with a gasp and Damon dropped everyone's hands as he rushed over to her. He was by her side in an instant and cradling her to him but Peyton seemed in shock for a moment, as if absorbing what had just happened to her.

"Damon," Peyton began in a shaking voice that had the dark haired Salvatore looking at her in concern, "I saw him, I saw your father."

Peyton's room

1:12 P.M.

"I still think this is unnecessary." Peyton grumbled as Luna helped her pack her bags.

"Whatever you thin k ceased to matter when Dan came after you. You're moving into the Boarding house with us and that is that." Luna said in a clipped tone.

Peyton sighed before fingering her wrist where Giuseppe had cut her. Damon had explained what he had seen and had theorized that the Vampire blood in her system had healed her; the baby's blood had healed her. A survivor, just like her parents.

Outside, Stefan had put a bag in the trunk when he heard someone step up behind him. Stefan grinned, already knowing who it was before dropping the smile and turning around to face Lydia.

"Something I can help you with Lydia?" Stefan asked curiously.

"I um, just wanted to see if you were alright?" Lydia said sounding nervous.

"Well, the spirit of my homicidal father just tried to kill my sister-in-law and unborn niece, so I'm good all things considered." Stefan said sarcastically and Lydia shot hi m a weak smile.

"I thought it was very…brave of you to do what you did." Lydia said but Stefan just waved her off.

"I'm just making amends for being a crappy brother for the last century." Stefan said to which Lydia just laughed and Stefan thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"You're a good person Stefan Salvatore." Lydia said before walking over and kissing him.

In a window overlooking the scene, Damon smiled happy for his brother. Hearing someone step up beside him, Damon looked over to see Nathan watching the scene with a blank expression.

"You okay buddy?" Damon asked.

"About that, I'm fine. Lydia could do a lot worse than your brother, but Damon, what was that today? If you were just a Vampire, you couldn't have anchored us." Nathan demanded and Damon was silent for a moment.

"Some secrets…need to stay secret." Damon said in a blank tone.

At that exact moment, Damon's phone starts ringing. Dan picks it up and while surprised, he is pleased at who is calling so he answers.

"Hey Ric, what's going on?" Damon asked pleasantly.

"You tell me, Brooke just called me. Are Peyton and the baby okay?" Alaric asked worriedly.

"Yeah, they're fine; we're moving her into the Boarding house with us. Look, I'm sorry about today." Damon begins only for Ric to interrupt him.

"No, I'm sorry. You'll tell me when you're ready." Alaric said compassionately.

"Can we meet tomorrow? You're right, there is something I've been keeping from you…and I should have told you a month ago." Damon tells him remorsefully.

Salvatore Boarding house

5:07 P.M.

"Okay, I'm all unpacked, you go now Damon." Peyton said a little annoyed at his hovering.

"Not yet. Come on, I want to show you something." Damon said as he held out a hand to Peyton.

Annoyed, but slightly intrigued, Peyton takes his hand. Damon leads her out of the room and over to the one next it, the room that separates his room from hers. Damon opens the door and leads her inside and Peyton's breath catches in her throat as she realizes what it is.

It's a room for the baby. The walls have been pained an emerald green and a crib stands in the center with a familiar stuffed bear inside it. There is a dresser with a picture of all four members of their family taken at thanksgiving on it. It's perfect for their little girl. Peyton turns around to face him, her face beaming.

"You did this?" Peyton asked happily.

"Stefan helped me, but yeah. I was gonna show it to you sometime this week, but since you're here I thought I'd show it to you now. And the best part is," Damon said before walking over to one side and pushing open a hidden door to Peyton's room, then blurring over to the other side and revealing another one to his room, "connecting doors to our rooms."

"Damon…this is amazing." Peyton said in awe as she looked around.

"Peyton…there's something I need to say," Damon said lowly and she turned to him, "I love you. I've loved you since I saw you on the bridge fifteen years ago. I've been hesitating in making this choice between you and Elena because I lost you fifteen years ago and it almost killed me before I turned it off. I mean literally, there were times when the others had a 'Damon watch' as they called it so I wouldn't try and kill myself."

"Damon." Peyton said stunned but he continued on as if he hadn't heard her.

"When I saw you lying there on that floor, I remembered what my life was like without you in it. Even as an emotionless Vampire, I felt a void in my life. Nothing, not even Elena could fill that void. When Dan said he was going after who I love most, I didn't have to think about it. I can't lose you," Damon said his voice thick with emotion as he walked over to her, "In a choice between you and Elena, it's no contest. You win every time Peyton."

Peyton, tears of joy running down her face, gave a broken laugh before wrapping her arms around Damon's neck. Damon leaned down and their lips met as their hearts did as well.

Salvatore Boarding house Living room

7:23 P.M.

"So how is she?" Luna asked as she and Stefan turned to their brother as he walked into the room, a skip to his step that she hadn't seen in over a decade.

"She's fine, just exhausted after today. Can't say I blame her." Damon muttered darkly.

"You know, despite what happened today, I'm happy for you brother." Stefan said as he and Luna smiled at him.

"happy for you to brother," Damon smirks at him as Stefan flushes and Luna giggles before they all became solemn, "now let's get down to business."

"You sure you want to do this Damon?" Luna inquires carefully.

"I told Dan if he went after Peyton I would kill him and everyone he's ever met. I'm prepared to live up to that promise, you two in or out?" Damon demanded bluntly.

"I'm in, what about you Stefan?" Luna asked as they turned to their brother.

"Let's kill them all." Stefan said darkly.

 **Please review, leave in any thoughts or comments in them.**


	12. Hell have no Fury like a Salvatore pisse

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

 **Hell have no fury like a Salvatore pissed**

Salvatore Boarding house, January 5th, 2013

7:54 A.M.

Damon opened his front door to see a delivery man with a wooden, rectangular box in his hands. The man looked at his clip board as Damon waited, wondering how incompetent this guy was.

"Damon Salvatore?" The man asked.

"Yeah?" Damon asked already annoyed.

"You have a package here from a mister…Klaus Mikaelson?" The man said as he read the name on his list.

"Good, it's finally here. Now just tell me where I have to sign?" Damon said eager to finally begin his plans.

The man handed Damon his clip board and a pen. Damon signed his name, handed them back to the man, and all but snatched the box from the delivery man before slamming the door in the man's face. Smirking, Damon turned around and walked towards the kitchen where his siblings and pregnant wife were eating breakfast.

"Good news everyone, Klaus finally took some time off from his busy schedule to get around to helping us," Damon said cheekily as he set the package on the counter, "now we can get on with our plan."

"Excellent." Luna smirked as Stefan nodded at their brother.

"Are you guys sure about this? I mean, I'm all for winning this fight, but we'll be declaring war on him." Peyton said nervous about her family's safety.

"Dan declared war when he went after you," Damon said as he walked over to her and took her face in his hands, "I told him that if he went after you, I would kill him and everyone he'd ever met. Time to show I wasn't blurring. For what he did, anything I could do to him is far too good for him."

"I'm your wife; it's my job to worry about you." Peyton reminded him.

"And I'm your husband; it's my job to protect you." Damon told her as they became lost in each other's eyes.

"Before you two start ripping each other's clothes off, can we start getting ready?" Luna asked smiling in amusement in spite of herself.

"And you shouldn't worry Peyton, Damon and I have handled worse than Dan." Stefan assured her as he stood up from the table.

Before anyone could say anything else, someone rang the doorbell again. Damon hands slid from Peyton's face as he growled in annoyance before blurring over to the door. Damon yanked open the door, expecting to see another delivery man. However, he was surprised to see Liz and a scowling Caroline.

"Liz…it's good to see you," Damon smiled before glaring at Caroline, "Blondie."

"Damon." Caroline said neutrally.

"Damon, I'd like to come inside and talk to you about something." Liz said sensing the tension between them.

"Sure, you can come in Liz." Damon said as he moved aside to let her in.

Liz walked inside and Caroline tried to follow her. However, the moment she reached the door way, it was like an invisible barrier was keeping her outside. After several attempts, Caroline stopped and growled in irritation, realizing what happened. Liz looked on confused as Damon snickered and all three heard Stefan's bark of laughter and Luna's giggle.

"What's going on here?" Liz asked not quite getting it.

"Well Liz, Vampires cannot enter a house they have not been invited in to and the day after Peyton moved in, I signed the boarding house over to her," Damon said with a smug grin at the furious Caroline, "and Caroline will never be allowed to come inside, not after what she did."

"What are you talking about?" Liz asked confused as Caroline tensed in fear.

"Oh, you mean Caroline didn't tell mommy dearest? Well then, allow me to fill in the blanks," Damon said gleefully ignoring Caroline's pleading gaze, "back when Julian was using Peyton as a bargaining chip against me, your daughter tried to get back at me for kidnapping you by attempting to kidnap me. She did this knowing that doing it was basically signing a death warrant for Peyton and our daughter."

"Caroline." Liz gasped in horror and Caroline couldn't meet her mother's eyes.

"You know Blondie; I've killed people for much less than that," Damon began in a low, threatening tone that forced the blonde to meet her Sire's eyes, "fifteen years ago, I would've ripped your heart out the moment I was free from Julian. The only reason I'm sparing your life right now is out of respect for your mother. Make one move that makes me think you're a threat to someone I care about and, no matter whose daughter you are, it will be the last thing you ever do. Now why don't you go wait in the car like a good girl while the adults talk?"

With his piece said, Damon slammed the door in her face. Damon hen turned around and headed for the kitchen and Liz, after overcoming her shocked horror, followed him. They reached the kitchen to see Stefan and Luna putting their plates in the kitchen while Peyton was finishing hers up. Everyone stood up when they realized they had a guest.

"Sherriff." Stefan said politely.

"Stefan, Luna," Liz nodded before turning to the blonde haired woman eating, "and you must be Peyton. I've heard good things about you."

"You as well Sherriff." Peyton smiled.

"Well, Stefan, Luna, get started on the project will you. Liz and I will be in the living room." Damon said causally before walking away with Liz following him, but not before spotting the box that Stefan grabbed as he and Luna headed out.

"What's in the box?" Liz asked him once they were in the living room.

"Oh, just something Klaus sent to help with our crusade against Dan. Now what did you need to talk about?" Damon inquired as he poured himself a drink.

The Grill

8:12 A.M.

Stefan, Luna, and Nathan stood in the deserted Grill. Ah, the perks of compulsion. On the table they surrounded sat an open map of Virginia. Nathan pulled out some soot and poured it on the map before he began chanting. The soot seemed to swirl around the map for several moments as Stefan and Luna watched it intensely. Finally, the soot stopped, surrounding an area that Stefan was quite familiar with.

"Of course that's where they are." Stefan muttered as he rolled his eyes in irritation.

"Where is it?" Luna asked as it was not an area she was familiar.

"It's the tomb where Damon thought Katherine was imprisoned." Stefan muttered darkly and Luna scowled.

"So the Devil incarnate is using the place where that heartless bitch tore out our brother's heart to mass his army? The universe just loves irony doesn't it?" Luna muttered bitterly.

"Let's worry about the universe's sick sense of humor later. For now, we know where they are." Stefan attempted to sooth his sister's anger.

Salvatore boarding house

8:19 A.M.

"So let me get this straight: you want to form another Founder's Council?" Damon asked beginning to get a headache.

"Not a Founder's Council per say, but another group in the know. A group that's running things, protecting our town. It seems that every time we turn around, a bigger threat is there to rear its head." Liz said and Damon nodded in remembrance.

"Katherine, Klaus, The Originals, Esther, Shane, Silas, Maxfield, Markos, Julian, Dan, the list goes on. Another council might not be a bad idea." Damon said stroking his chin thoughtfully.

"I was hoping you'd lead it." Liz told him and Damon hesitated before answering.

"I'll help you set it up…but I can't lead it." Damon told her regretfully.

"Why not, you've been leading Elena and the others into battle for years, despite what the others may think." Liz told him and he nodded.

"I'm not denying that and the problem isn't that I don't want to help you out Liz. The problem…is that Peyton and I are leaving Mystic Falls once we deal with Dan." Damon told her and Liz gapped at him for a minute before regaining the ability to speak.

"You're leaving?" Liz asked still not quite able to process the news.

"There's nothing holding me here except for you and Ric, who can't come into Mystic Falls since he died and we can't exactly tell people he pulled a Jeremy." Damon pointed out.

"What about Stefan and Luna?" Liz asked but he shook his head.

"They're coming with us," Damon gave a slight smile at her stunned look, "Stefan is going to be seventeen forever and he just graduated high school _again_. Eventually people are going to start noticing that he's not aging. Besides, nothing is holding him here either: he hasn't spoken to Caroline since she tried to pull the plan to get Peyton killed and neither of us has had much contact with Elena since we decided it would be best for us to cut her out for the time being. Since we're all in a good place with each other for the first time in decades, we decided to start over together this time." Damon explained.

"Where will you go?" Liz asked softly.

"Klaus's gift of help also came with an invitation to join him in New Orleans. I lived their once, it's a great place to live and Klaus actually isn't so bad. Truthfully, my family and I probably have more in contact with the Originals than with Elena, Caroline, and their group." Damon admitted.

"So…this is it then. This isn't like when you'd get mad at Elena or Stefan and skip town for a few days. You're really leaving, all of you." Liz asked sounding sad about the fact.

"I'm doing what's best for my family. I won't deny that some good has come out of returning to this place: reuniting with my brother, learning Katherine's true nature, my relationship with Elena despite how it ended, Ric, you," Damon and Liz smiled at each other before he continued, "but for the most part, Mystic Falls has just brought me more pain than happiness and I won't raise my daughter in a place like this."

"I can't fault like you for wanting better for your daughter. Can I give you some advice, parent to parent?" Liz asked and at Damon's encouraging nod continued, "From the moment our children are born, we seek to protect them. But we never consider the effects our actions have on them. Every choice we make affects them Damon, don't be reckless or impulsive in your decisions."

Damon opened his mouth to respond when his phone went off, signifying a text. Damon reached in and pulled out his phone and unlocked it. Reading the text, Damon smirked before pocketing it and standing up.

"Well, thanks for the advice Liz, but I really have to get going. We'll talk later about setting up a council later, but I have a prior engagement." Damon said before he walked out of the room.

Brooke's house

8:50 A.M.

Brooke held Damon's head, chanting for a few minutes before removing her hands. She then repeated the same process with Stefan and Luna before stepping back. The house was completely empty except for the four of them, as they didn't want Sam or Enzo to find out about this. They still weren't sure if one of them was the mole and Damon wasn't sure which one of them he distrusted more.

"That should do it, but it's only a temporary fix. It will only last today." Brooke warned them.

"We'll only need today." Damon assured her as he turned to leave.

"You sure Peyton's safe?" Brooke asked worried for her best friend if something were to go wrong.

"Nate and Alaric are keeping watch on the Boarding house." Luna said as she followed her brother.

"Guys…are you sure you don't want any help?" Brooke inquired feeling kind of useless.

"This is family business Brooke." Stefan told her before following his sibling out.

The Grill

9:27 A.M.

"My mom couldn't even look at me on the ride home." Caroline told Elena and Bonnie miserably.

"You tried to get a pregnant woman killed." Bonnie reminded her.

"What exactly did you expect would happen once she found out?" Elena asked honestly curious.

"I was kind of hoping she wouldn't find out." Caroline admitted sheepishly.

"Caroline, you really crossed a line," Elena said tired of hearing Caroline defend herself with no remorse, "you wonder why Stefan won't talk you? You tried to kill his unborn niece and you don't seem at all sorry. Luna told me something last week: 'you can side with my brothers or you can side with Caroline, but you can't side with them both.' Well, right now you're making this choice really easy. I you know, Klaus once described you as full of light, well I can't see it."

With her piece said, Elena stood up and walked way. She was out the door so fast that she didn't even notice Sam watching the scene with a compensative look on her face.

The Tomb

9:35 A.M.

The group of Witches were all doing their own thing. When they heard footsteps, they assumed it was Dan so they dropped their guard. But when they stood to attention, they froze in fear as they realized that it wasn't Dan. In fact, it wasn't Dan times three.

"Is this a private party or what?" Damon said as he strolled into the tomb like he owned the place.

"Well, we Salvatores are known for crashing parties." Luna said jovially as she walked around the tomb, shooting the Witches malicious smiles that made them nervous.

"Damon, Luna, you know what our mother always taught us: we don't play with our food." Stefan said sternly.

"Food, you think you can call us food?" A Witch that bore a striking resemblance to Meredith Fell.

"Yeah I do." Stefan said stiffly.

"It's been a long time Carrie…or would you prefer Meredith," Damon asked and smirked at Carrie's frozen form, "I bet you thought you had me fooled huh? That I had just brushed off the resemblance as a crazy coincidence, but I never took my eye off you from the moment you walked into Ric's life. And when Julian walked into my house in the Prison Dimension, I knew the resemblance was no coincidence. Although honestly, I almost didn't recognize you without all the crazy you're usually covered in."

"Brother, all this talk is boring me?" Luna whined.

"Then let's eat. Got any objections brother?" Damon shot Stefan's way.

"None." Stefan gave a very Damon like smirk.

"You think you can kill us?! Allow me to prove you wrong!" Carrie shouted and tried to inflict pain on Damon but was baffled when nothing happened.

"Confused? Why, it's almost as if some Witch by the name of, gee I don't let's say Brooke Davis, cast a spell that temporarily protects us from unfriendly magic." Damon said in a condescending voice.

"But Damon, that's exactly what happened." Luna said in a matching tone.

"Are we going to do this or not?" Stefan asked a little irritated.

Damon shot his brother a smirk before his Vampire visage appeared. Luna quickly followed suit before the two of them sunk their fangs into the Witch closest to them. As everyone screamed, they tried to head for the exit but found it blocked by Stefan. The other Salvatore brother smirked in a very Damon-like fashion before letting his Vampire visage appear.

"It's time to show you why they call me the ripper." Stefan said in a deadly voice before sinking his teeth into one of the Witches and the tomb was filled with terrified screams.

Salvatore Boarding house

9:43 A.M.

Someone was knocking on the front door and Nathan was walking away to answer it. In the kitchen, Alaric was watching amazed as Peyton devoured the pancakes he had just made her, almost faster than humanly possible. Alaric chuckled as Peyton pushed her plate towards him with a look that clearly said 'more.' Still, Alaric moved back towards the stove.

"It must be worse to be pregnant with a Half Vampire baby than it is to be pregnant with a human one." Alaric said sympathetically.

"It's not all bad, I get the supernatural healing and the enhanced strength, but I could do without the mood swings." Peyton said wistfully.

"Um, Sawyer," Nathan said awkwardly as he walked back into the kitchen, "you have a guest."

The guest walked in and Peyton stood up in surprise while Alaric almost dropped the spatula he was holding as Elena walked in. Alaric put his spatula down and stepped in front of Peyton protectively once he had overcome his shock. It was not that he thought that Elena would purposely hurt Peyton; he knew she wasn't that kind of person. However, he also knew from experience how a Vampire's emotions were heightened and more difficult to control than a humans. While Elena had no doubt accepted Damon's decision to be with Peyton, she was also hurt, a little angry and slightly jealous.

"What are doing her Elena?" Peyton asked cautiously.

"I came here to talk to you about Caroline." Elena said bluntly.

The Tomb

9:51 A.M.

Damon dropped the last body as he and His siblings surrounded Carrie. Carrie was the last Witch standing and was obviously scared a little desperate. Desperate people were more dangerous than calm, all three Salvatores had learned this the hard way over the years.

"You're not gonna kill me, you can't!" Carrie shouted sounding a little insane.

"Kill you, why would I do that?" Damon asked before blurring over to her and slapping her hands in shackles, "You're more useful to me alive."

Snarling, Carrie chanted something in Latin. When nothing happened, Carrie repeated it but still nothing happened. Getting a little scared, Carrie repeated it several times but nothing happened.

"Save your breath. Those shackles are enchanted so that any Witch doesn't have access to their magic while wearing them." Stefan said coldly.

"Which means you're coming with us." Luna smirked as Damon grabbed her and began dragging her towards the entrance despite her struggle.

Salvatore boarding house

10:05 A.M.

"Can we get you something to drink?" Peyton asked politely as the two women sat across from each other with Alaric and Nathan standing behind Peyton.

"No thank you." Elena shook her head as she smoothed out the wrinkles on her jeans nervously.

"Why are you here Elena?" Peyton asked in a bluntness that was strongly reminiscent of her husband and Elena was quiet for a moment.

"Liz used to tell me all the time that when someone is arrested for a horrible crime, the loved ones always say 'that's not the person I know.' I never truly understood that until today when I was talking with Caroline."

"Elena…what did Caroline do?" Alaric worried for his surrogate daughter.

"She came to the Grill and complained about Damon telling her mom about what she did. She…just doesn't seem even a little sorry for trying to get you and the baby killed, I don't even recognize her anymore." Elena admitted.

"Hatred is the most powerful emotion after love," Nathan said softly and Elena looked over at him, "My father was consumed by his hatred for my uncle, and it looks like Caroline has been consumed by hate for Damon."

"Well, I don't know if Luna told you this, but I came by the day of your baby shower to make peace. Luna said you wouldn't believe it as long as Caroline was my best friend and that I needed to choose a side. Well, here I am." Elena said sheepishly.

Anything that could be said in response was interrupted by the front door bursting open. The four of them quickly walked to the front door, concerned by the sound of a struggle. They walked in and were shocked to see Damon, Stefan, and Luna, their clothes covered in blood stains, walking with a chained Meredith Fell.

"Damon, what are doing? Let Meredith go!" Alaric barked only for Nathan to stand in front of him with a pointed look when the Original moved to do it himself.

"Her name's not Meredith Ric, it's Carrie. She works for Dan," Damon told him and His best friend stepped back stunned, "and with Julian and Xavier both dead that makes her Dan's second in command. Which makes her useful."

"How so?" Nathan asked as he looked over at his longtime friend.

"Because we can use her to figure out who the mole is." Damon said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Before anyone could process this, Nathan's phone went off. Pulling it out, Nathan looked at it before giving Damon a certain look. Understanding immediately, Damon nodded to his siblings and Stefan and Luna took Carrie down to the cellar, even as she cried out in outrage. Nathan then turned away and answered his phone.

"Can I help you with something Dad?" Nathan spat the word like it was the vilest of curses.

"Where is Carrie? Your friends slaughtered my army and took Carrie, so where is she!" Dan screamed in fury.

"Haven't you learned by now Dan? Hell have no fury like a Salvatore pissed, and you managed to piss all three of them all off at the same time." Nathan said smugly before hanging up as Alaric snickered.

"What are you doing here Elena?" Damon asked as he looked over at his ex.

"Choosing a side." Elena said simply and Damon looked over at her skeptically.

"Damon," Peyton called him and he switched his gaze to his wife, "I believe her."

"We can't afford to fight a war on two fronts." Elena said earnestly and Damon nodded, willing to accept her words.

"I really hope you mean that Elena. Because if you do, then I need you to do something for me. Something that you won't like." Damon said and Elena gulped at the implications before Damon spoke again.

Caroline's apartment

3:13 P.M.

Caroline opened the door to see Elena standing there. Caroline was surprised because after what happened today, Elena was the last person Caroline expected to see on her doorstep.

"Can I come in?" Elena asked hopefully.

Caroline nodded before letting Elena inside. Before closing the door, Caroline thought she felt something brush up against her but there was nothing there. Shrugging, Caroline walked into the living room and sat down next to Elena on the couch.

"Look, we're fighting a war on two fronts now and it's partly because of what you did. You tried to kill Peyton and the baby, Luna and Brooke hate you for it, Stefan is ready to kill you, and Damon is ready to declare world war three on you." Elena warned her.

"Then why are you here?" Caroline asked spitefully.

"Because you're my sister and I love you." Elena said earnestly as she put her hand on Caroline's shoulder and the two hugged. However, Caroline felt something pierce the skin on her neck and the burning sensation of Vervain entering her bloodstream. Elena pulled back, the syringe in her hand. Caroline looked at her in absolute betrayal while Elena looked pained but resolved.

"But I can't side with you on this." Elena said softly her voice cracking as Caroline lost consciousness and fell to the floor.

The cloaking spell vanished and Nathan appeared in the room. He kneeled down to Caroline and checked her over, making sure she was unconscious. Realizing she was, he looked back up at Elena who was wiping her tears away.

"You're doing the right thing, I hope you know that." Nathan said softly hoping to ease her pain.

"Then why does it hurt so much?" Elena asked in a broken voice.

"I said the right thing, not the easy thing. Now let's get moving, the Vervain with only last so long." Nathan said as he picked Caroline up bridal style and started walking towards the door with Elena trailing behind him.

 **So, did you like the plot twist of Elena siding with the Salvatores against Caroline? What repercussions do you think this will have with Liz and the rest of Mystic Falls? And for those of you who are wondering who the mole is, all will be revealed by the end of next chapter. Please Review, they really inspire me.**


	13. The mole's identity

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

Bar near Whitmore, January 21st

9:41 P.M.

Liv was closing up when something began to feel off. It was like her magic suddenly began screaming at her, warning her of danger. Liv removed her hands from the stool she placed on the table and began looking around for danger. Her heart hammering in her chest, Liv whirls around, looking for the one who is setting off this feeling of dread. Finally, she sees Damon Salvatore step out of the shadows, but this does nothing to hamper her dread. She backs up as Damon walks closer, but this seems to only amuse him.

"You can relax; if I wanted to hurt you I'd have done it already." Damon said fighting off a snicker.

"You tortured my brother." Liv reminded him pointedly.

"Julian held Peyton over me as a bargaining chip so I'd work for him. It wasn't personal," Damon pauses, reflecting before he continues, "well; okay it was a little personal. After all, it was your brother who left me on the other side to blink out of existence. It was only because of Bonnie's grams and Julian's vendetta against me that saved me from the black void of Hell."

"What do you want?" Liv asked wearily.

"Well, I think your people and my people have a mutual enemy: Dan Scott." Damon pointed out.

"What's your point?" Liv asked curiously.

"My point is that my people have been doing all the work while yours have been hiding like a bunch of babies afraid of the dark." Damon said sounding a little angry.

"If Dan finds my father, it will only be a matter of time before he finds the crown. You know this; you sent us the warning to hide my father." Liv asked sounding confused.

"Alone, our people will be defeated by Dan and what's left of his army. But together, we might just have a chance in hell of beating him." Damon told her with such certainty that it baffled her.

"What?" Liv asked sure she had misheard him.

"Your Coven's power, my team's experience, we could beat him. Kill him, send him to a prison world, it doesn't matter. Together, we can end this." Damon told her imploringly and Liv honestly wanted to agree with him.

"Witches and Vampires don't usually get along." Liv pointed out.

"We don't have to get along, we just have to work together long enough to beat Dan. My team can do that, can your coven?" Damon inquired.

"I'll talk to my father." Liv finally agrees.

Brooke's house, basement, January 22nd

7:25 A.M.

Caroline groaned in pain. Her arms and legs were bound to the wooden chair by Vervain soaked rope. While she had not been tortured, the Vervain was painful in itself. Moreover, she had been given one blood bag in total since arriving her two weeks ago. However, none of that compared even a little bit to the pain of Elena's betrayal. Hearing the door open, Caroline looked up to see Enzo walking into the room.

"Morning Sunshine." Enzo smirked at her glare.

"Well, if it isn't the traitor, maybe you should bring in my traitorous best friend so we can talk over coffee." Caroline said bitterly.

"We didn't side with Damon over you because we don't care for you, we sided with him because you tried to get Peyton killed and have shown no remorse for it," Enzo said and Caroline scoffed, "let me give you some advice gorgeous: letting hate consume you won't help. Hopefully, Damon and his family will be packing up to leave after tonight, then what?"

"Huh?" Caroline asked not getting it.

"You've let yourself be consumed by hate for Damon, what will you do with him gone? You've already damaged your relationship with Elena by forcing her to choose between you and the Salvatores, your mother can't even look at you, and Stefan wants you dead. Soon, all you'll have left is your hate if you don't let go of it." Enzo warned her.

"He kidnapped my mother and tried to kill me!" Caroline shouted defensively.

"And Julian was holding the life of his wife and unborn daughter in his hands. Would you have rather him let them die? Why is it so import to you to have a reason to hate Damon?" Enzo inquired.

"Because he's the bad brother! He's supposed to be the villain, he's not supposed to be able to love, he's not supposed to do good things! He's not supposed to be selfless; he's supposed to be evil! He can't be the hero; it's not how it's supposed to be!"

"So you go crazy because Damon disproves this picture of him you built up in your mind of him as the villain? I hate to break this to you, but people rarely turn out to be who you expect them to sweetheart. You can either accept it and move on, or let it destroy you. How's going crazy working out for you?" Enzo asked and Caroline was silent.

Salvatore Boarding house cellar

7:53 A.M.

Carrie came to with a gasp. She was hanging from her hands, still bound by the enchanted shackles that were linked with chains leading up to the ceiling. There was a sharp pain in her neck, there was a strange sensation throughout her body, and she had a craving for…something. She looked down to see Damon smirking up at her with Alaric standing behind him.

"Good, you're up." Damon said brightly.

"What did you do to me?" Carrie asked in a hoarse voice.

"Oh, I fed you blood then snapped your neck, so you're in transition. Speaking of which," Damon pulled out a blood bag and opened it before shoving it in Carrie's face, "drink up, crazy pants."

Carrie could not resist and wrapped her lips around the plastic bag. She started sucking, moaning at the taste of blood. Damon then pulled the back away and Carrie hissed, attempting to lung for it. Damon smiled and signaled Alaric to come over to him.

"If you were just gonna kill me, why bother turning me?" Carrie demanded.

"Oh, because you wouldn't answer my questions, no matter how much I tortured you. But since you're a Vampire now, you can be compelled by an Original. Do you your thing buddy." Damon said as he patted Alaric on the shoulder.

"You will answer our question and you will answer them honestly." Alaric said and Carrie went limp as the weight of compulsion hit her.

"Dan claims someone close to me is a mole. Do you know if that's true?" Damon demanded.

"I don't know. Dan never said anything about a mole to anyone." Carrie told him unable to stop.

"It's possible he was lying about the mole." Alaric suggested after Damon was quiet for a moment.

"Or Dan kept it to himself, the less people who knew about the mole the less chance of me finding out who it is." Damon said frustration entering his voice.

"Maybe we can use her for more information?" Alaric suggested

"Yeah, there is something. On Thanksgiving, Dan had me and Elena brought to some underground bunker, is that Dan's home base?" Damon inquired.

"No, it's just a place Dan uses when he wants to bring in those he doesn't trust, usually his enemies, to negotiate." Carrie told him hating that she was telling them this.

"Do you have any idea where Dan is?" Alaric inquired.

"No, he always came to me and arranged our meetings in a neutral place." Carrie told him and the two Vampires looked at one another in disappointment.

"Looks like Dan trusts his right hand as much as he trusts his enemies…somehow, I'm not surprised." Damon grumbled.

"When and where are you supposed to meet him again?" Alaric asked her as he turned to his ex with a cold expression.

"He was supposed to call me the day after you kidnapped me, but my phone was smashed in the attack on the Tomb." Carrie said.

"We're obviously not getting any useful information out of her; Dan didn't give her much information that could be used against him. There's only one question we need to ask now: do you want to do it or do you want me to? After all, she used you and toyed with your heart." Damon asked as he turned to his best friend.

"I can't even look at her." Alaric said sourly before turning around and walking away.

Damon smiled a malicious smile before plunging his hand into her chest. Carrie gasped in pain and horror as she felt his hand wrap around her heart. Damon sneered at her, enjoying her torment before he decided to put her out of her misery as he yanked her heart out of her chest. Carrie gasped as her skin turned grey as her eyes shriveled shut and Damon carelessly dropped her heart to the floor.

The Grill

8:23 A.M.

"So, you get your father on board?" Luna asked as she, Stefan, and Liv sat at a table.

"Most of our coven should be driving into town in about ten minutes, Luke is meeting them." Liv assured them.

"Good, our team will meet up later with your coven." Stefan said with a nod.

"You sure that your team can work together?" Liv asked skeptically having heard about the separation of the team from Tyler.

"When Caroline was kidnapped by Dan, we decided to bury the hatchet and work together." Stefan assured her.

Salvatore boarding house

8:29 A.M.

"Okay, thanks Stef," Damon hung up his phone before turning to Peyton, Alaric, Elena, and Nathan, "Liv got her coven on board, it's time to make our move."

"You realize once this goes down…they'll never forgive us once they find out what we did to Caroline, any of us." Alaric said as he moved his eyes from Elena to Damon.

"That was the risk we had to take. We never would have survived this if we weren't united and that was never gonna happen with a Caroline Forbes shaped road block in the way." Damon reminded him.

"I just hate doing this; it feels like I'm the bad guy." Elena said sounding distressed.

"Dan's the bad guy here Lena, not us. Sometimes we have to make hard choices, choices that seem like the wrong thing to do. It's what happens when you're at war." Damon told her not unkindly.

"But we're not at war!" Elena denied only for Damon and Peyton to give her sympathetic looks.

"We were at war the moment Julian left the prison world." Peyton said gently.

"And now we have a chance to end it. No one says this will be easy or it won't have consequences, but we can't treat this like he's one of our old enemies, the stakes are too high Elena." Alaric told her.

"What do you mean like our old enemies?" Elena asked confused.

"What he means is ignoring me, causing problems by ignoring me, and forcing me to enact a plan by myself that usually ends up cleaning up your messes." Damon said bluntly and Elena found she had no defense.

"You know Elena, some people define insanity as 'Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.'" Peyton mentioned casually and inwardly smirked at Elena's uncomfortable expression.

"Enough of that, we're not here to fight, we're all on the same side here," Damon lightly scolded his wife before turning back to Elena, "we may have to be prepared for the reality that Liz and the others may never forgive us Elena. We did what we had to do in order to prevent our group from fracturing in a time when it needed to stand united and I for one will face the consequences when this all over."

Brooke's house, basement

9:03 A.M.

"Can you at least loosen the ropes a little?" Caroline asked with a puppy dog eyed look that didn't fool Enzo for a minute.

"Your charm ceased to affect me the moment you tried to have my best friend's unborn child killed." Enzo told her, a sharp edge to his voice.

The door opened and both Vampires turned, as best as they could, in their seats to see Stefan walk in. The Salvatore gave a cold look to his ex-best friend before turning to Enzo with a neutral look on his face.

"It's time to go." Stefan said to which Enzo nodded before standing up.

"Wait, where are you going?" Caroline demanded as they started to walk out the door.

"Not that it's any of your business, but we have made arrangements that allow us to have a decent chance at defeating Dan." Enzo told her mockingly.

"And you won't have a chance at escaping just because we're gone." Stefan told her coldly before they shut the door behind them.

Stefan and Enzo walked up the stairs where Lydia and Jamie were waiting for them. Enzo nodded at the two before walking out the door while Stefan hesitated. Sensing Stefan's intention, Jamie left but not without giving Stefan what he hoped was a threatening glare. Stefan chuckled as Jamie left before Lydia walked over to him.

"You look after yourself alright? And look after Uncle Damon and Aunt Luna to." Lydia ordered him to which he smiled.

"I'll do the best I can, but those two can look after themselves." Stefan assured her.

"Still, I don't want to lose anyone I love today, not them, not Aunt Brooke, not my dad…not you." Lydia trailed off awkwardly.

Stefan smiled at her before leaning down and kissing her. Though shocked at first, Lydia quickly returned the kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck. As Stefan wrapped his arms around her waist, Lydia couldn't help but reflect that this had been the most time they had had together since they began their relationship three weeks ago. Between Stefan guarding Peyton and making plans with his siblings and Lydia's overprotective father and brother, they hadn't been allowed much alone time. Stefan then pulled away from her and moved his hands from her waist to her face as her hands slide to his shoulders.

"Then think of that as insurance that I have to come back to continue this," Stefan joked and Lydia laughed, "look, I know we haven't been together long, but I like you Lydia. I haven't liked anyone like this in a long time and I hope when all this is over, that whatever….this is can continue."

"I hope so to." Lydia smiled up at him.

"Stefan, come on!" Enzo shouted from outside which made said Vampire chuckle.

"I got to go, but I'll talk to you later." Stefan kissed her again before walking out the door.

Salvatore boarding house

9:15 A.M.

"We have a location; it's time to end this." Damon told his wife as put on his jacket as they stood in their bedroom.

"Just…be careful okay?" Peyton asked her pregnancy hormones making her more worried than she would've been normally.

"Hey," Damon blurred in front of her and took her face in his hand, "I'll be fine, we'll all be fine. The only one whose gonna die today is Dan. That son of a bitch is going to pay for everything he's done, I promise you."

"We're still no closer to finding out who the mole is." Peyton reminded him softly.

"Stefan's keeping an eye on Enzo and I'm not letting Sam out of my sight. Hey, look at me," Damon makes her look into his eyes, "this time next week; we'll be out of here. You and I can finally start the life together that we've always wanted; it'll all be okay Peyt."

Her worry all but vanishing, Peyton closed her eyes and leaned in as Damon kissed her. Damon pulled away far too soon, in her hormonal opinion, but Damon kissed her forehead before turning away. Damon walked out the door of their room and walked down the stairs to see Elena, Jeremy, and a few Witches from Liz's coven.

"We'll keep her safe Damon." Jeremy assured him and Damon scoffed.

"Please, you couldn't even stop Wolf-Boy from being hijacked by a Traveler, you're backup Pocahontas. Elena; can I talk to you privately?" Damon asked and Elena nodded hesitantly before they walked over to the front door.

"We'll take care of her Damon, you don't have to worry." Elena assures him as they walk out of normal earshot.

"I know, that's not why I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to say…I'm sorry Elena." Damon told her sincerely.

"For what?" Elena asked confused.

"For hurting you. I know, better than anyone else, how much it sucks being the odd one out in a love triangle, so….I'm sorry that you got hurt." Damon tells her remorsefully.

"It's okay Damon. Honestly, I think I knew from the moment I found out about Peyton that I had lost you," Elena can't help the bittersweet smile that crosses her lips at his surprised look, "I always felt like you were holding something back. I wasn't sure what, but you were always slightly distant with me. When I saw you with her at the Gala, the way you looked at her, like she was the sole focus of your world…that was when I knew that I had lost you for good. Because no matter how much you love me, you love her more."

"I'm sorry Elena." Damon repeated.

"Don't be, you get to keep the love of your life and be a father. I never fought for you but, from the zeal with which she defended you against Caroline at the Gala, I could tell that she would fight for you until her last breath. You deserve someone who will fight for you like that." Elena's voice began to crack as did her façade of selflessness.

Damon, seeing this, decided to take his leave. Damon leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before he turned away and walked out the door. Once she heard the door close behind him, Elena's mask crumbled as she leaned against the wall as she cried out in pain.

On the outskirts of Mystic Falls

9:37 A.M.

Damon slammed his car door shut and approached the scene. Everyone he had fought alongside in the last few years, plus Liz and a bunch of Witches from The Parkers' coven, all awaited him and he joined his siblings in staring at the ruined building before them. In seemed oddly fitting that the place that the place that had made their lives so miserable in their human life was now the place where his enemy was plotting his next move.

"Home sweet home." Damon said dryly as he stared at the Salvatore mansion.

"Home? More like a nightmare." Luna said spitefully.

"Let's just deal with Dan and be done, this place is full of too many bad memories." Stefan said solemnly to which his siblings nodded.

"You guys okay?" Nathan asked concerned.

"Yeah, there are just a lot of bad memories here." Damon answered for all of them.

"So what's the plan?" Alaric asked curiously.

"The plan is to stick together, find Dan, kill or capture him, I'm not partial to which." Damon said as he and his siblings started walking forward.

"That's the plan?" Bonnie asked incredulously.

"Dan has been one step ahead every time we have a plan, so I'm just kind of winging it this time." Damon called back.

Exchanging bewildered looks, everyone followed the Salvatores. They walked inside, everyone looking around the collapsing building. It was strange for their friends to look at this blackened, collapsing house and realize that this was where the three Salvatores had grown up. However, Stefan noticed that the house was….wrong.

"This…isn't right." Stefan said as he looked around.

"What do you mean?" Brooke asked the former Ripper.

"I was here three years ago with Elena and the house was falling apart. But now…it's only falling apart from the outside." Stefan said as he looked around the perfect structure of his childhood home.

"He's right; it looks almost exactly like it did when we were kids." Damon agreed with his brother.

"Some sort of restoration spell?" Sam asked Brooke who nodded.

"He restored the inside so it wouldn't collapse on him while doing minimal on the outside to avoid suspicion. He's been here all along." Brooke announced and the Salvatore siblings snorted as one.

"Fate has a sick sense of humor." Luna said bitterly.

There was a rush of wind and the hairs on the back of everyone's neck stood on end. There was a rising up of hulking, shadow like creatures and everyone prepared to fight. The shadows morphed into cloaked men and women and there were a lot of them. Everyone was surrounded and the Salvatores realized that they had not, in fact, killed the remainder of Dan's army.

"Which of you is Damon Salvatore?" one man asked.

"Who's asking?" Damon asked with a sharp edge to his voice.

"Go up the stairs to your father's study," The man pointed to the staircase behind him, "Dan will be waiting for you. Go alone, or we will kill everyone in here."

"We'll see about that!" Enzo snarled and moved to attack when Damon held his hand, signaling Enzo to stop.

"Stay here everyone; this is between me and Dan. No one else has to get involved." Damon said as he walked towards the stairs.

"Damon, ignoring your impulsiveness for a minute, even you couldn't be cocky enough to believe that your powerful enough to defeat Dan on your own." Alaric pleaded with his friend to see reason.

"You're right, I'm not. Don't worry Ric, I have a backup plan." Damon smirked before walking up the stairs leaving a stunned audience.

Damon walked up the stairs and down the familiar hallways. Passing his old room on the way, Damon felt a bit of nostalgia before continuing on. He stood in front of his father's study for a minute, reflecting on the irony of this situation before he pushed the doors open. He walked inside and saw him. Sitting there in at the desk in his father's chair, Dan smirked at Damon as the oldest Salvatore felt a bit of Déjà vu at the whole situation.

"We need to have a chat." Dan said as he stood up.

Salvatore Boarding house

9:46 A.M.

"What was that?" Jeremy stood up as everyone heard Peyton shriek.

Elena didn't bother responding and blurred over to Peyton's location. She froze, not bothering to do anything, frozen in shock. Jeremy and the Witches joined her and Elena pushed passed her shock and met Peyton's terrified gave. The blonde stood in a puddle and the area of her clothes where her swollen stomach was was wet.

"It's time." Peyton said breathlessly her voice holding as much fear as it did awe and joy.

Salvatore Mansion

9:47 A.M.

"There's nothing to talk about. You went after Peyton, tried to sentence her to a fate worse than death, and now I'm going to kill you." Damon said with barely restrained rage.

"But I think there's a great deal to talk about," Dan waved his hands and the doors to the study slammed shut, "I only put Peyton in danger because you refused to work with me."

"I refused to help you unleash supernatural Armageddon, so you putting Peyton in Limbo where the spirit of my homicidal father attempt to destroy her spirit. Yeah, it's all my fault." Damon sneered.

"And how goes your search for the mole?" Dan asked causally and Damon tensed.

"Who is it? Tell me or I'll torture it out of you!" Damon snarled.

"There is no mole, it's called psychological warfare son." Dan smirked and Damon saw red.

Letting out an enraged roar, Damon lunged for Dan. However, Damon didn't reach Dan when he fell to his knees, crying out on agony. Dan smirked as he kneeled down so he could look Damon in the eyes. Damon, his face a picture of agony, looked up at his smirking nemesis.

"You brought this on yourself you know. If you had joined me, you could have had everything you had ever wanted." Dan mocked him.

"I already do." Damon growled before punching Dan across the face, sending him flying into a wall.

Down stairs, everyone heard the crash. Luna was concerned and moved as if to follow her brother up the stairs when a male Witch moved, intercepting her path. Luna stepped back as everyone became tense, waiting to see what would happen.

"Stay where you are, little girl." The Witch said rudely and Luna snarled at him.

"How about you step away from my sister." Stefan ordered in a steely voice.

"Ah, the protective big brother," The man said mockingly before he smirked, "you'll need to take that role more seriously in the future. Your brother doesn't stand a chance; he will die by Dan Scott's hand."

Before either Salvatore made a move, a gunshot rang throughout the room. The cloaked Warlock stepped back, holding his hands over his chest as blood bled onto them. Everyone turned to see Nathan, face unreadable, holding a smoking pistol. The Witch fell to the ground dead and it was an all-out battle-royal after that. Brooke waved her hands and all the windows shattered, the Vampires all lunged for the Witch nearest to them, and basically all hell broke loose.

Upstairs in the study, Damon lifted Dan up by his shirt and threw him across the room. Dom slammed into the desk, knocking it over, before flopping on to the floor. Damon blurred over and began to violently press Dan's face down into the floor and smiled darkly at the sound of Dan's muffled scream of pain. However, the smile quickly vanished as Damon flew back into the fall. Both Vampire and Witch stood up again, glaring at each other with mutual hatred.

"You're out of your league Damon, coming up here along was the last mistake you'll ever make. You'd have a hard time facing me as I once was, but now that I've absorbed the magic from the Traveler's spell, you don't stand a chance against me." Dan told him arrogantly.

"You're right," Damon appeared to give into defeat as his shoulders slumped, "you're too powerful a Witch for me to take on alone, if only there was some way for me to serve your connection to your magic. Oh wait."

Damon blurred over to Dan and before the Witch could blink, Damon had his hands in chains. Immediately, Dan knew what had happened when he felt his link to his magic server. Damon smirked at the man's panicked expression before he took action. Using his Vampire speed, Damon rapidly punched Dan in the chest multiple times in a matter of seconds before grabbing his chained hands. Damon swung him around a few times before slamming him down on the desk so hard that the wooden antique split in to pieces. Dan groaned in severe pain as Damon stood over him in satisfaction.

"There is." Damon finished.

Downstairs, the battle royal had turned into an all-out war. Nathan shot two Witches point blank in the head, Stefan snapped another's neck, and Luna threw another over the railing. On the lower levels, Alaric decapitated a female Witch as Enzo extracted another's heart. Meanwhile, the Witches, instead of killing their enemies, simply incapacitated them. Everyone stopped fighting, however, when they heard someone walking down the stairs. Everyone turned to see Damon leading a chained Dan down the stairs. Dan's group gapped in disbelief while Damon's family and friends/allies smirked in satisfaction.

"There's no more need for bloodshed. Come quietly and you'll live, maybe you'll get a pardon from the Witch community. If you want to fight though, you will die." Damon warned them.

"Says who!" One brave male Witch demanded to the amusement of the others.

"My dad didn't pick very intelligent follows did he?" Nathan asked Damon in amusement.

"No he didn't," Damon agreed before turning back to that Witch, "look, I'm about to become a father, so I'm trying to be a better person, someone who doesn't kill everyone who gets in his way. Look around you, notice how almost all of your side is dead while my side has very few injuries and no casualties. You are severely out matched and outnumbered. If you still want to fight, you will die. Surrender, no one else needs to die today."

Salvatore boarding house

11:37 A.M.

"Okay Peyton, you can do this okay?" Elena tried to sooth her as Peyton cried out in pain.

"Shouldn't we take her to a doctor?" Jeremy asked concerned for Peyton.

"And if the baby is born with fangs? Besides, it's too late for that, I don't know if it's because the baby is half Vampire or what, but this baby is ready for delivery now. I enough from class to deliver but I need your help, all of you." Elena's eyes traveled from her brother to the two Witches standing guard and back.

Salvatore Mansion

12:09 P.M.

"So, you're not talking huh? That's okay, we've got ways of making you talk," Damon smirked down at Dan's unspeaking follower, "my friend Enzo's a real torture specialist. In fact, maybe I should let the two of you get acquainted."

"That…won't be necessary." The man finally spoke.

"And he speaks! So tell me, are there anymore secret armies that Dan has lying around, because I feel like we've been here three times already?" Damon asked as he knelt down to the young Witch's level.

"No, we are the last one." The man assured him.

"Where's the necklace?" Damon demanded and the Witch gave him a confused look.

"What necklace?" the Witch asked confused.

"The Necklace that Julian had me steal from Brooke. I know it's not at Julian's base because I went back and looked, which means Dan has it. So where is it?" Damon demanded.

"I swear to you, I have no idea what you're talking about." The Witch said bewildered.

"He's not lying," Liv said as she walked into the room, "none of them do. Dan obvious keeps a lot of secrets."

"So what now?" Damon asked as he stood up and turned to face her.

"We take him back to my father, get the information there." Liv told him.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the whole point of this little alliance to keep that from happening?" Damon asked trying not to get irritated.

"Yeah, when Dan had all his power, but with those shackles, he's basically a bee without a stinger. He's no threat and we'll be able to use a spell to get the information from Dan's mind. It will only work with an entire Coven," Liv explained before he could ask why they couldn't do it here, "and he won't be going alone, Nathan and I will escort him along with two members of my Coven."

"Damon, we have a problem." Bonnie said as she walked over to them.

"I'll leave you two alone." Liv nodded at them before walking off.

"What's the problem?" Damon asked as he turned towards her.

"I've been talking to the Witches here and none of them have seen Caroline, Dan didn't take her." Bonnie said worriedly and swallowed, knowing that the time for secrets was over.

"I know….I did." Damon told her and she looked at him stunned.

"What?" Bonnie asked shocked.

"In order to beat Dan, we all needed to work together, our entire group and the Gemini Coven. That was never going to happen with Blondie blinded by her hatred of me. So I had her abducted and blamed it on Dan." Damon told her remorselessly.

"Do you have any idea what Liz will do once she finds out?" Bonnie hissed at him furiously.

"She'll probably never forgive me, but that was a risk I has to take. Look Bonnie, you want to believe that everyone can survive if we remain good, but that's not how it works in the real world, you've crossed some lines yourself. Sometimes, you need to do things you don't like. Sometimes, you need to get a little blood on your hands. Sometimes, in order to defeat a monster, you need to act like one." Damon told her.

"I swear to god if you hurt her-"

"Relax, she may not want to stay inside for a few weeks and be wary of Vervain for a while, but she'll survive. It's more than what she deserves after trying to get my wife and daughter killed." Damon sneered.

"Damon," Luna walked over carrying her cell phone "Elena's on the phone and she wants to talk to you."

Damon nodded and stepped away from Bonnie. He had a good idea that he had probably just damaged his relationships with Bonnie and Liz beyond repair, but he did what he had to do. Damon snatched the phone out of his sister's hand.

"Is everything alright Elena?" Damon asked slightly worried.

"You need to get back here." Elena told him bluntly.

"Is everything okay?" Damon asked her horrible scenarios flashing through his mind.

"Yeah, there's just something you need to see." Elena told him.

Salvatore Boarding house

12:35 P.M.

Elena led a worried Damon up to his and Peyton's room. She patted him on the arm comfortably before walking away to give him privacy. Taking a deep breath, Damon walked over and opened the door.

Peyton lay in their bed, her stomach no longer hug and holding a small bundle. She looked up at him, her eyes bright and Damon felt his worry melt away. He approached the bed and she handed him the small bundle. A little girl stared up at hi with his own eyes and some little blonde hair. Damon found himself smiling down at the baby, feeling overcome with a sense of love that he had felt only one other time. Peyton smiled before noticing something was bothering him.

"What's wrong Damon?" She asked as he sat down next to her, taking her hand.

"Nothing, everything is perfect," Damon told her and she gave him an imploring look and he broke down, "Dan told me there is no mole, it was just a trick to get inside my head. But…there's a part of me that doesn't believe him."

Armored car, en route to Portland

1:03 P.M.

"You know," Liv began from where she was standing in the back of the car as she eyed Dan, who sat across from Nathan and between to members of her Coven, "you've killed a lot of people, made a lot of people suffer. What do you say Nathan, do you want to just forget about the necklace and kill your monstrous father once and for all?"

Nathan did not respond, simply stood up and took out his pistol. Dan did not respond to the scene, simply stared at Nathan impassively. Nathan aimed his pistol before firing off two shots. However, neither hit Dan. Liv gasped in horror as two bullets lodged themselves in the heads of her fellow Coven members. Liv was so stunned, so horrified by what she was seeing, that she didn't notice that Nathan had aimed his gun at her until she heard him shoot.

She felt fire enter her lungs as pain filled her and she fell to the floor. She couldn't seem to move, to form a sentence or thought. The sense of betrayal and her doom loomed over her as she heard Nathan walk over to her and she closed her eyes. The last thing she heard was two more gun shots.

Dan smirked as Nathan-his son, his pride and joy, his _mole_ -turned to him and nodded with a blank expression.

 **So, what do you think? That's right, Nathan was the mole the whole time. Please leave any thoughts or comments in a review. if anyone here notices any parallels to a certain scene from Agents of Shield, that is intentional because I love that show.**


	14. Family is power

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, Tree Hill, or anything else you may recognize.**

 _Tree Hill, March 19_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _8:23 P.M._

" _Thanks for dinner, I had a wonderful time." Peyton said as they stood outside the door to her apartment._

" _So did I. So…may I see you again?" Damon asked trying not to sound too hopeful._

" _I'd like that, but before you make that decision…there's something I feel you need to know." Peyton told him seeming to become a bundle of nerves._

 _Before Peyton could get out exactly what it was that she needed to tell him, the door to her apartment opened. Damon looked over her shoulder to see a woman in her late forties step out of the apartment. She had brown eyes, dark brown hair that was starting to grey, and had smooth, Caucasian skin that had not yet started to wrinkle. Before anyone could say anything, a small, blonde blur ran out and attacked itself to Peyton's leg. As Peyton pried it off, Damon realized it was a little girl. She had curly blonde hair and familiar green eyes that seemed to sparkle with mischief._

" _Mommy you're home!" the girl told Peyton in delight._

" _And you are supposed to be in bed." Peyton said with a pointed look at the older woman._

" _I put her to bed an hour ago." The woman said confusion in her voice._

" _I was just pretending Grandma Karen," The girl said before looking over at Damon, "who are you?"_

 _So this was what Peyton was so worried about. She had a little girl and was worried that it would scar Damon off. If a kid was the most he had to worry about, then this would be a blast._

" _I'm Damon," Damon introduced himself as he knelt down to her level and offered her a friendly smile, "but you know, its good manners to introduce yourself first. What's your name?"_

" _My name is Sawyer!" Sawyer said excitably._

" _Well, it's nice to meet you Sawyer." Damon smiled at the little girl, wondering how much impact this girl and her mother would have on his stay in town._

Damon's eyes snapped open, still blurry from sleep. At first he wasn't sure what awakened him from his dream-memory, but then he heard it: his daughter's crying, begging for attention. Damon sat up as he heard Peyton groan beside him. She also sat up, her blonde hair a tangled mess of curls and her bags under her eyes, but she still looked like the most beautiful creature to ever walk the earth in Damon's opinion. Peyton started to get up, but Damon placed a restraining hand on her shoulder.

"You go back to sleep, I'll get her." Damon assured her once she looked at him.

Too tired to argue, Peyton nodded and lied back in bed, her green eyes closed before her head hit the pillow. Damon smiles lovingly at her before walking over to the conjoining door and opening in. Damon closes the door behind him as his little girl fusses around in her crib, begging for someone to hold her. She stops crying when she sees him, her blue eyes looking at him in awe. Damon smiles down at her, she is a miniature version of Peyton, everything Peyton except for her eyes, she had his blue eyes.

"Hey, stop all the noise okay? Daddy's here, everything's gonna be okay." Damon said softly as he lifted the baby girl into his arms.

Diner, January 22nd

8:17 A.M.

"You sure you don't want to order something, it's gonna be a long ride to Portland." Dan warned Nathan as he took a bite of scrabbled egg.

"Save the concerned father act. You and I are done once this all over." Nathan sneers at him.

"You really think so?" Dan challenges and Nathan raises an eyebrow at him, "do you really think that when this all over, you can just go back to your family like nothing happened? Hayley and the kids will never trust you again, Damon and Luna will hate you forever, and Peyton will never forgive you."

"Hopefully when I explain everything, they'll understand." Nathan said but his voice sounded of false optimism.

"It's too late son, you've lied for too many years, deceived too many people, murdered allies. Once they find out, you'll never be forgiven, you will lose everything. I'm all you'll have left." Dan taunts him viciously.

Nathan sneered and opened his mouth to reply but his cell phone started ringing. Digging it out pf his pocket, he sees that it's Haley. Glaring at his father one last time, Nathan gets out of the booth and walks out the door of the diner before answering.

"Hey Hales, how is everything on the home front?" Nathan inquired.

"Great, Peyton gave birth to a daughter." Haley told him.

"Really, that's great! What did they name her?" Nathan inquired.

"They haven't yet, there still talking about it. Hey, do you know why Liv hasn't called Luke back, he's getting worried?" Haley asked and Nathan tenses.

"Oh yeah, her phone died." Nathan said trying not to think of where he and Dan had buried the three bodies.

"Well, I'll see tomorrow when you get back. I love you." Haley told him.

"I love you to." Nathan said before hanging up trying to ignore the guilt he felt, which was easy considering he had been ignoring it for fifteen years.

Salvatore Boarding house

9:21 A.M.

"You're good with her…really good with her." Stefan says almost in disbelief as he watches his brother hold his niece in his arms contently.

"Don't sound so shocked little brother." Damon said with a teasing grin.

"Sorry, it's just I don't remember you being this good with kids growing up." Stefan said and watched as a forlorn expression came over his brother's face.

"Believe it or not Stefan…fatherhood is not a concept I'm entirely unfamiliar with." Damon said softly as he thought back to when he was in a similar position.

 _Peyton's apartment, July 29_ _th_ _, 1997_

 _8:07 P.M._

"… _and they all lived happily ever after." Damon finished as he looked over from his chair to see Sawyer apparently asleep in her bed._

 _Smiling softly, Damon set the book on the shelf before getting up to leave, a sleepy voice calls out._

" _Damon," Damon turns back to see Sawyer, her green eyes open and looking at him sleepily, "since you and my mommy are getting married…does that mean you'll be my new daddy?"_

 _Damon freezes, not quite sure how to respond to that. It was something he had never really considered when he asked Peyton to marry him, if he was honest. He knew he loved Peyton and Sawyer and he wanted them to be a family, but he never really considered that Sawyer might see him as a father figure. Pulling himself together, Damon sat back down, feeling that this was a conversation that he should probably have sitting down._

" _Look Sawyer…I love you, and I love your mom. I'll be there for you for whatever you need me to do or be, but you don't have to call me dad or daddy if you don't want to. Do you understand?" Damon asked gently hoping he explained it well enough._

" _Yeah." Sawyer said, almost asleep._

" _Okay, goodnight Sawyer." Damon said as he stood up and walked to the door._

" _Goodnight…Daddy." Sawyer said sleepily as sleep finally claimed her._

 _Damon froze, unsure of what to think of feel at the moment. Then, slowly at first, a warmth spread through his heart. It was a warmth that he had never truly felt, a warmth that he would later recognize as a parent's unconditional love for their child. A small, content smile graced his lips as he gently closed Sawyer's door behind him._

"Uh, you okay Damon?" Stefan asks as Damon stands with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Yeah, just…remembering things." Damon said with a note of nostalgia in his voice as the doorbell goes off.

"I'll get it." Stefan said with a little sarcasm when Damon makes no move to put his daughter down.

Ignoring Damon's laugh, Stefan smiles a little as he walks down the hall. He honestly wasn't bothered by getting the door and it was clear Damon wasn't putting that little girl down anytime soon. Stefan reached the front door and blinked in bewilderment.

Stefan had to use his Vampire hearing to listen to Peyton's human heartbeat in the house to make sure that she was still there. He did this simply because the young woman standing on his doorstep looked so much like her. She was a little tanner but that was the only truly noticeable difference. She had curly blonde hair; the same shade as Peyton's, which went down to her shoulders and green eyes that matched Peyton's. She looked like she was in her late teens or early twenties and was dressed in something Stefan expected Brooke or Luna to wear. She had on a dark blue top, ripped blue jeans with black tennis shoes and a black leather jacket that looked like it would've been worn by one of Stefan's siblings. But it was her face that took Stefan the back most: while it was almost an exact replica of Peyton with a few different features here and there, her eyes and face held an anger that just screamed Damon.

"I'm looking for Peyton Sawyer and Damon Salvatore." The Girl said looking at him like he was no one important, in a way that was eerily similar to his brother's.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Stefan asked on guard.

"You're Stefan Salvatore," The Girl noted and Stefan froze causing the girl to smirk at him in a Damon like manner, "I guess the stories I've heard are true, you are a self-righteous little stick in the mud. The name's Sawyer and I guess you and I are…family."

Sawyer smiles at him as though she was enjoying an inside joke, again in a way that makes Stefan do a double take so that he's sure he's not talking to Luna or Damon. This girl may look like Peyton, but she sure as hell acted more like his brother. Hearing someone step up behind him, Stefan risked a glance back to see it was Luna. She looked over his shoulder to see their guest and let an uncharacteristic high pitched shriek. Luna launched herself at Sawyer and the two embraced in a scene that reminded Stefan of two long lost friends being reunited.

"I can't believe you're here!" Luna said as she pulled back with a beaming smile that Sawyer hesitantly returned.

"Well, after I stopped ignoring…his calls, I finally listened to your brother's messages. Is it true, is she really…" Sawyer trails off, as though she is unable to finish.

"Yeah, she's alive and she's here. Come on in, they'll both be so happy to see you," Luna said excitably as she began to lead Sawyer into the house before hesitating, "unless…you don't want to see him?"

"No…I want to. In fact, I think I need to." Sawyer said with a shaky breath.

Luna smiled gently at the younger blonde before she began to lead her inside. Stefan, who had only grown more bewildered during the conversation, stepped aside almost robotically as the two woman entered the house. Snapping out of it, Stefan closed the door behind them before following them. Luna led Sawyer to the kitchen where Damon was, still staring adoringly down at his daughter. Hearing them enter the kitchen, Damon looked up and froze in shock at seeing Sawyer. Damon and Sawyer's reactions to each other confused Stefan even more: Damon looked at Sawyer like she a lost treasure that he had never expected to see again while Sawyer looked at him with a mix of that anger she had first arrived with and a little longing.

"Hey…" Sawyer trailed off as if she wasn't sure what to call Damon.

"Hey." Damon said softly.

"Is that…" Sawyer trailed off as she spotted the baby in Damon's arms.

"It's a girl. Would you like to hold her?" Damon asked her softly as he gestured her forward.

"Yes, I would." Sawyer decided as she walked towards the pair.

It was a surreal experience for Stefan to watch Damon, who had refused to surrender his new born daughter to anyone, easily give her up to this girl. Stefan wondered, not for the first time in the last five minutes, exactly who she was. But he didn't ask, as he felt that this was a private moment. Stefan watched as Sawyer looked down at his niece, completely mesmerized by the little girl.

"What's her name?" Sawyer asked as she and the little girl stared at each other in silent memorization.

"She doesn't have one yet," Damon said and gaze a sheepish smile when Sawyer looked him with a 'Really?" expression, "mom and I can't agree yet."

"Just pick one already, right kid?" Sawyer asked as she looked down at the baby who was staring up at her curiously, "you're gonna need help to survive in this family. But don't worry, that's why I'm here…because I'm your big sister and I won't ever let anything bad happen to you."

Stefan blinked, not quite sure he had heard her right. He was about to demand what was going on here when he heard someone walk in behind him and gasped. Everyone turned around to see Peyton standing there, staring at Sawyer like she was something that might disappear at any moment. Damon took the baby from Sawyer but it was as if she didn't even notice, as she was staring at Peyton in the exact same way.

"Sawyer?" Peyton asked in a voice that was almost trembling with emotion.

"Hi mom." Sawyer says with a watery smile.

The two women launch themselves at each other, clinging to the other in a vice grip as they sob into each other's shoulders.

Portland, Parker residence

10: 41 A.M.

The driver of the armored car, a human compelled by Luna to drive the car, pulled up to the house. In the back, Nathan was putting the shackles on Dan's wrist. He loosened them so that Dan could easily shake them off, but tightened them enough so that they wouldn't fall off without Dan adjusting the chains in just the right way.

"Let me do the talking." Nathan ordered as he led his father out the back of the car and towards the front door roughly.

"There's no one to convince yet, stop selling it." Dan hissed quietly.

"Who's selling?" Nathan asked with a vindictive smile.

Dan glowered at his son as Nathan walked them both up the steps of the front porch. Nathan rang the doorbell and they waited, tension knotting in their stomachs. The door opened and two young men stood in the doorway, both looking at the scene with scrutiny as Nathan steeled himself. This was it.

"I'm Nathan Scott, I'm pretty sure you know my bastard of a father," Nathan sneered with absolutely no fake amount of distain as he gestured to Dan who looked down, the picture of a seemingly broken man, "I'm here to deliver this son of a bitch to Joshua Parker."

"Where is Olivia, she was supposed to deliver him with you?" One of the men asked suspiciously.

"She came with us for transport, but she had us drop her off at a bar a few miles back. Said something about how a prisoner that has no magic wasn't worth her time. Now, are you gonna let us in or do you want to explain to Joshua Parker how he didn't get the information he needs because you won't let us in." Nathan asked sounding perfectly annoyed.

The two guards exchanged uncertain looks before reluctantly stepping aside. Nathan resisted the urge to smirk, but not without great difficulty, as he stepped inside the house. As the two guards began to lead them down the hall, no doubt towards Joshua, Nathan hardened his heart. He knew what he had to do, so he pulled out his reloaded pistol and fired two shots. The two guards dropped dead to the floor, blooding bleeding onto the carpet from where the bullets had penetrated their skulls. An old man, looking like he was in his late sixties with greyed hair and a matching beard with brown eyes, ran into the room and gapped in horror at the scene. Dan freed himself of his shackles before using magic to pin Joshua to the wall.

"You must be Joshua Parker; we need to have a chat about the crown." Dan said cheerfully as he approached the struggling Witch.

Salvatore boarding house

10: 43 A.M.

"So, Peyton has a daughter? Another daughter I mean?" Stefan asked still trying to wrap his head around it as he and sibling sat I the parlor, drinking as The Sawyer women caught up and spent time with the newest member of the family.

"For the last time Stefan, yes." Luna said annoyed as she took a drink.

"And no one mentioned her to me in the last three months…why?" Stefan asked a little hurt.

"Well, I tried calling her, texting her, emailing her, and even writing her letters after Peyton and I came home. She didn't reply to any of them, so Peyton and I figured that we'd deal with the Sawyer situation after Dan was dealt with." Damon said as he poured himself another glass.

"So you two didn't have a good relationship then?" Stefan asked confused.

"It was actually the opposite," Luna mentioned and Stefan turned to her, "they had a great relationship. Damon had her calling him 'Daddy' before he and Peyton were even married and Damon was the world's most overprotective father. One time when she was six, Sawyer came home with a scrapped knee and Damon was ready to track down the kid that did it and rip their throat out."

"The punk had it coming." Damon muttered under his breath and both his siblings chuckled at his response.

"So, if you two were so close, what happened that she wouldn't answer you calls?" Stefan inquired curiously and Damon froze for a moment as Luna looked over at him, wondering how he would handle this.

"When she was eleven, I…made a decision that I thought was best for her at the time." Damon said vaguely.

"It wasn't," The Salvatore siblings turned around to see an angry Sawyer storm into the room with a hesitant Peyton following with the new born baby in her arms, "how could you possibly think that was best for me?"

"Um, what do you guys say we give these two some privacy?" Luna suggested as she began to lead Stefan out of the room.

"I agree." Peyton said as she turned and left with them.

"Sawyer-" Damon began but was cut off by his Step-daughter.

"Why, I want to know why?" Sawyer asked her angry façade cracking and the deep pain underneath showing.

 _Tree Hill, April 17_ _th_ _, 2004_

 _8: 35 P.M._

 _It was a rainy night, no lightning or storms, but it was absolutely pouring out. Damon drove into Brooke's driveway, his eleven year old Step-daughter in the back seat of his Comoro, nearly asleep. She woke up when she heard Damon turn the car off and sat straight up. She grabbed her bag as Damon blurred over to her side and let him pick her up before he blurred them to the porch and he set her down. Damon rang the doorbell before he waited for it to answer and he didn't have to wait long before Brooke Davis opened the door to greet her guests._

" _Aunt Brooke!" Sawyer squealed before launching herself at her godmother._

 _Brooke smiled as she caught the little girl in a tight hug, the little girl not noticing the staring contest her step-father and Godmothering were in. Brooke stared into Damon's eyes in earnest, silently pleading with him to change his mind. But Damon would not be swayed, shaking his head slightly. Brooke's heart broke for father and daughter, knowing that tonight would give both of them broken hearts._

" _Okay, you be good for Aunt Brooke okay?" Damon told Sawyer as he kneeled down to look her in the eye._

" _But daddy, aren't we both visiting her?" Sawyer asked confused and Damon gulped as he realized it was time to explain what was happening._

" _Sawyer…this isn't a visit, you going to live with Aunt Brooke from now on." Damon explained trying to squash his own feelings._

" _You mean we're going to live with Aunt Brooke from now on?!" Sawyer asked excitedly and Damon took a deep breath to block his emotion before continuing._

" _No…I'm gonna go away Sawyer." Damon said almost breaking down right there._

" _But just for a while, right?" Sawyer asked nervously beginning to understand and Damon considered lying to her but decided that would hurt her more so he decided to tell her the truth._

" _No, I'm leaving…and I'm not coming back." Damon told her with a crack in his voice that only Brooke, who began to cry for father and daughter, noticed._

" _No, you can't leave me Daddy!" Sawyer protested wrapping him in a hug, which he returned as he realized that this would likely be the last one he would ever get from her._

" _I don't want to, but it's what's best for you. Just know that your Daddy loves you…more than you'll ever know." Damon's voice trembled with his emotions before he stood up and blurred back to his car._

 _Damon shut the door, taking a deep breath to get his emotions under control. Thanks to his heightened senses, he could still hear Sawyer screaming for him and see Brooke holding her back as the young girl tried to run to the car. Damon took another deep breath before putting the keys in the ignition and turning on the car. He peeled out of the driveway and drove into the night, the pain in Sawyer's cry echoed on Damon's face as a single tear slide down his cheek._

"Why?" Sawyer asked brokenly as a tear slide down her cheek.

"Because I was broken," Damon told her in a controlled voice as she looked at him surprised, "before I met your mother I was a damaged man, after she died I was just a broken mess of a man. You were the only thing keeping me from turning it off, but you deserved better Sawyer. You deserved more than a broken man to look up to as a parental figure. I left you, yes, but I did it so you'd have a better life. You deserved a better life Sawyer, even if I wasn't in it."

"Would you do it differently?" Sawyer asked with a trembling voice as Damon looked at her confused, "if you could go back…would you do it differently?"

"Yes," Damon said immediately, "I would still leave you with you with Brooke…but I wouldn't have cut you out of my life. I would've called you every day; I would've skyped with you. I would've visited you, more than just on the holidays. I would've made sure that you knew I loved you, that I still love you…because you're my kid. Lucas Scott may have helped bring you into the world, but you're my daughter."

"I just wanted to be with you." Sawyer whispered brokenly.

"I know, I wanted it too, but what kind of life would you have had? Relocating every two or three years, leaving all your friends behind, always starting over? You deserved better." Damon told her.

"You think I didn't know what kind of life I would've had? I was a kid, not stupid; I knew what I would've had to do. But I would've done it gladly, because you were my father. I just wanted to be with you Daddy." Sawyer said tearfully and that familiar warmth spread through Damon's heart at hearing her call him that after so many years.

"I wanted it too." Damon said brokenly as Sawyer launched herself at him and he hugged her back as they finally recoiled.

"Why are they both so stupid?" Luna asked tearfully from where she, Peyton, and Stefan stood outside the room in case they were needed.

"Because they're father and daughter." Peyton said as she gave a watery smile, happy that two of the three most important people in her life had finally made up.

Brooke's house

11:03 A.M.

"So you and the Gilberts have pretty much been ousted from the group huh?" Brooke asked Alaric as she poured him a glass of Bourbon.

"Yeah, not that I really care. Damon, Elena, and Jeremy were the only reasons that I even stuck around them." Alaric shrugged as he took a drink.

"So…what's next for you? I mean, Damon leaving, Jeremy's going to art school, and Elena's got her own life now. Where does Alaric Saltzman go from here?" Brooke inquired which gave Alaric pause.

"I don't know…I never wanted to be a Vampire, I hate it. I don't know how to deal with this, with any of it." Alaric confessed and Brooke had a déjà vu flashback to her senior year in high school.

"You know who you remind me of? Peyton, during our last year of high school." Brooke told him and he looked up at her confused.

"What?" Alaric asked bewildered and a sad smile crossed her face.

"Let me tell you about a love story of a tortured artist and a tortured athlete. It all starts one night when the artist almost runs the athlete over…"

Parker residence

11:12 A.M.

"Dan, if we torture him anymore, he'll die or pass out." Nathan warned Dan from behind as him as Dan lowered his hand from where he had been using magic to torture Joshua.

"Perhaps you're right…" Dan trailed off thoughtfully as he mulled over how to proceed.

"How could you do this?" Joshua asked weakly as he glared at Nathan.

"It was just a mission, it wasn't personal sir." Nathan said dismissively.

"You've betrayed everyone you love and doomed the world to be under this madman's thumb. Feels plenty personal to me." Joshua drawled bitterly.

"I'm not doing this to help him. In fact, once this over, he can drop dead for all I care." Nathan sneered as he glared at Dan hatefully.

"Then why?" Joshua asked wanting to understand.

"Because he's gonna help me bring my brother back to life." Nathan told him stunning the older Witch.

"That's enough." Dan said before raising his hand and beginning to chant.

Joshua threw his head back as he began to scream in agony. It was a little uncomfortable for Nathan to watch the old man scream in agony, writhing against the wall in agonizing pain. Finally, he stopped as he stilled but Nathan was increasingly disturbed by the state Joshua was in. he stared straight ahead, his eyes unfocused as some saliva dripped down his chin. The guy looked drain dead.

"There, that takes care of it." Dan said as he lowered his hand.

"What did you do to him?" Nathan asked trying not to show how freaked out he was.

"It's a spell that allows one to enter another's mind, used mostly to gather information. It's a complex spell, as you have to be very careful or else you can permanently damage the victims mind if you probe too deep." Dan said, gesturing to Joshua pointedly.

"Will he ever recover?" Nathan asked concerned for the older Witch.

"No. even if he could, someone will find him and realize that I've escaped. We need to take of this, kill him." Dan ordered as he moved to walk down the hall.

"But won't killing the leader of the Gemini Coven kill all its members?" Nathan asked, sickened at his father's callousness.

"It will take a couple days for people to discover that there all dead, so that buys us some time to find the scathe." Dan said over his shoulder.

"Wait, you found out where the scathe is?" Nathan asked surprised and his father stopped before turning around.

"No, I didn't. Joshua didn't have any information on the whereabouts of the scathe, but I know who does." Dan assured him with a devilish smirk.

"Who?" Nathan asked curiously.

"It all goes back to an old legend. Legend foretells of an heir of Hades that, on a night where the stars reach a perfect alignment with the constellation of Greek Goddesses Artemis and Hera, shall mate with a woman of pure light. The heir was unable to produce a child, but it was said the goddesses Artemis and Hera would grant him, for one night only, the ability to procreate. There would a child, a miracle child, which was said would heal past wounds and reunite a family." Dan explained.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Nathan asked, not connecting the dots.

"Still haven't figured it out? Well then, allow me to give you a hint: The child was supposed to have the surname 'Savior.' What is Savior in Italian?" Dan demanded and it didn't take long for Nathan finally connect the dots.

"Salvatore." Nathan said slowly and softly, finally understanding what Dan was saying.

"There's a reason Damon has focused all his energy into protecting the crown while not even thinking about the scathe…he's known where the scathe has been all along." Dan told him.

"So what, once we're done here I'm just supposed to go up to him and ask him nicely where the scathe that could bring an end to mankind is located?" Nathan asked sarcastically.

"Damon considers you to be one of his best friends. If he will confide in anyone about this, it's you son," Dan said before turning around and walking down the hall, "now take care of him."

As Dan walked down the hall, Nathan pulled out his gun and pointed it at Joshua. He hesitated, not wanting to do this. He had killed before in his role as his father's spy, but this wasn't just murder, it was genocide. There were some lines that just couldn't be uncrossed. Lucas' face flashed through his mind and, without another thought, Nathan pulled the trigger. Joshua started as a bloody stain appeared in his white shirt where his heart was.

Brooke's house

11:15 A.M.

"…and as the Tortured artist held her newborn daughter in her arms, she knew everything would be alright." Brooke finally finished the story and Alaric lowered his glass, which he hadn't even noticed he had barely touched.

"So…Peyton has another daughter?" Alaric inquired curiously.

"Yeah, she actually arrived at the boarding house this morning if you want to meet her. When Peyton had her, she got the strength to go on after Lucas' death, but she shut herself off from romantic love. At least until Damon came to town and swept her off her feet." Brooke reminisced fondly.

"So Damon really had the happy family life in Tree Hill?" Alaric asked, unable to picture his best friend with that.

"I know you've all had your issues with Damon in the past, but Damon was just trying to fill the hole in his heart in any way he could. He was just someone who had lost the one person who could see him for who he truly was. You, Elena, and Stefan may have eventually seen past his uncaring façade, but Peyton was the only one who could see past it completely…maybe she's the only one who ever will." Brooke explained patiently.

A scream pierced the air. Alaric and Brooke both sprinted from the kitchen to where the scream had originated from, the living room. When they enter the room, they stop and stare at the scene they just walked into, concern and horror flashing in their eyes. Haley, Jamie, and Lydia all surrounded Luke, who was lying on the floor face up, his eyes unfocused. His breathing was labored and Alaric could hear his erratic heartrate. For whatever reason, Like was dying, Alaric realized.

"What happened?" Brooke demanded as the two approached.

"I don't know, he just collapsed!" Lydia said defensively.

"My dad," Luke said weakly everyone giving him their attention, "my dad is dead…"

"How do you know?" Jamie asked.

"When the leader of my coven dies…in this case my dad, the entire coven dies." Luke explained appearing to grow weaker.

"How could this have happened?" Lydia wondered out loud.

"Something must have happened…when Liv and Nathan delivered Dan. You have to find the scathe….and keep it safe. Otherwise, the world…is…doomed." Luke said as his eyes got glassy and his head fell limply to the side.

Salvatore boarding house

11:58 A.M.

"I'm glad you and Sawyer made up." Peyton told Damon as she leaned against him from where they watched Sawyer, Stefan, and Luna fussing over their daughter.

"After I turned my emotions back on…I never realized just how much I missed her until I saw her again this morning." Damon confessed.

"You don't know what you have until it's gone." Peyton smiled brightly at him before kissing him.

"Hey, when are you two gonna give this kid a name?!" Sawyer called out as they broke away from each other.

"Think we should tell them?" Damon asked with a smirk.

"I don't know, are we sure we agree?" Peyton asked in mock-indecision.

"Yeah, we agree," Damon said as they walked over to the others and he took his daughter from Stefan, "ladies, Stefan, we'd like to introduce you to Rose-Marie Lillian Salvatore."

"You named her after Rose and Mom." Stefan recognized.

"Yeah, I did. I wanted to honor them because they are the two women who had the most impact on my life…present company excluded of course." Damon hastily added when his sister and daughter glared at him.

"Damon!" Everyone turned around as Brooke barged in with Alaric and the Scott family behind her, "we have a major problem."

Portland

12:05 P.M.

"Nice wheels." Dan told Nathan as he got into a red Ferrari.

"What do you want Dan?" Nathan asked in no mood for Dan's mind games.

"I just want to make sure that you won't let sentiment doesn't make your resolve waver." Dan said carefully.

"Sentiment makes my resolve stronger," Nathan spat as he thought of his brother, "just don't forget our deal: I help you do this, and you use your new power to bring back Lucas and everyone I've killed in your name."

"Of course. I will gladly bring them all back, just give me the scathe." Dan assured him.

Nathan simply nodded before slamming on the petal and driving off, back towards Mystic Falls for the last part of his mission.

 **So, what do you think? Please leave any thoughts or comments in a review, feedback is greatly appreciated.**


	15. Lies exposed

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Diaries, One Tree Hill or anything else you may recognize.**

Salvatore boarding house, June 22nd

7:12 P.M.

"So let me get this straight, Luke died because Dan somehow apparently killed his dad and no one can get in touch with Nathan?" Damon asked for clarification as he paced back and forth while his family, Brooke, Alaric, and the Scotts watched him.

"That's the gist of it, yeah." Brooke told him.

"How could this have happened?" A distraught Haley wondered out loud as Jamie attempted to comfort her.

"It's Dan freaking Scott; he must have even more minions than we thought." Damon growled, mentally scolding himself.

Before they could debate anymore, Haley's cell phone started ringing. Quickly fishing it out of her pocket, Haley eagerly checked the screen and almost sobbed in relief at seeing her husband's name.

"Nathan?" Haley answered desperately.

"Hey Hales." Nathan said softly.

"Where are you, what happened with Dan?" Haley asked her entire body sagging in relief at hearing Nathan's voice.

"It's a story I'd rather tell in person. I'll be there tomorrow morning, say hi to everyone for me. I'll see you soon." Nathan promised her before he hung up.

Salvatore boarding house, June 23rd

8:11 A.M.

Nathan pulled the red Ferrari into the driveway of the Salvatore Boarding house and shut off the car. Nathan got out of the car and walked up to the porch just as the door burst open and Haley ran out the door and threw herself into his arms. Nathan had to steady himself but he held Haley close, reveling in the feeling of her.

"What happened?" Haley asked him as she stepped back.

"Let's go inside and I'll explain everything." Nathan suggested.

Haley nodded and she began to lead him up the stairs, not noticing the smug, self-satisfied smile that crossed her husband's face. The pair walked inside and Nathan closed the door behind him before following Haley into the sitting room. His kids, the entire Salvatore Family-including his niece Sawyer, Nathan noticed with equal parts joy and dread-Brooke, Sam with her daughter in her lap, Enzo, and Alaric all stood in the room, waiting for him. Damon poured a glass of bourbon and offered it to Nathan, who accepted it with a grateful nod.

"So, you wanna tell us what happened buddy?" Damon inquired with a sharp edge to his voice.

"Dan played us; he had an army of Witches waiting for us." Nathan lied easily but no one noticed.

"Wait, how'd he know where to go?" Stefan interjected curiously.

"They were tracking us pretty much since the moment we left for Portland. Liv and I had barely stepped inside the house when they attacked, knocking me out and killing Liv. I came to to see Dan interrogating Liv's father. I tried to help but there were too many. Dan tortured Joshua Parker for hours until he told him what Dan wanted to know and then he killed him." Nathan said faking the emotion in his voice to make his story believable.

"How'd you get away dad?" Jamie asked.

"I didn't, Dan let me go. Knocked me out and dropped in an alley where I woke up next to a dumpster. I hotwired a car and got here as fast as I could." Nathan told his son.

"Why would he do that?" Stefan asked curiously.

"Maybe he was feeling sentimental, I don't attempt to understand the mind of a psychopath Stefan," Nathan snapped before turning to Damon, "Dan claims that the Salvatore family is the last surviving descendants of Hades…and that you know where the scythe is."

"Damon, is that true?" Luna asked as everyone turned to him.

"Yes, on our mother's side we hail from Hades. Mom told me when she first got sick." Damon said as he looked from Luna to Stefan and back.

"Then you know where the scythe is." Brooke pointed out.

"Let's just say that it's somewhere Dan will never find it and leave it at that. We need to focus on finding a way to beat Dan." Damon told them to Nathan's silent dismay.

"He's right and the smaller circle of people who know where it is, the better. If only Damon knows, then it's the best chance we have of making sure Dan never finds the last item he needs to start Armageddon." Brooke said and everyone slowly nodded in agreement.

"So what do we do?" Enzo asked the obvious as everyone turned to Damon and he was quiet for a moment, realizing that he had just been elected official leader of the group.

"We run," Damon said after a moment, "it won't be long until Dan sends his goons after us, so we need to get out of Mystic Falls, maybe out of the state. We need to get as far from here as possible. Nate, Sawyer, go to the local market and get supplies for the trip.

"Okay Dad." Sawyer said as Nathan nodded silently, a plan forming in his mind.

"Ric," Damon turned to his best friend who had watched him silently the entire time, "I won't force you to go with us. If you decide to stay here, take care of yourself. If you decide to come, meet us all at Brooke's house. The rest of you, pack up as much as you can carry and meet back at Brooke's house in three hours because we're heading to New Orleans. Now move!"

Mystic Falls

7:56 A.M.

"Um, Uncle Nathan? This isn't the supermarket." Sara pointed out as he stopped the car at the edge of town.

"Sawyer…I've lied to you. I'm not the man the man you think I am," Nathan said regretfully as Sawyer looked at him confused, "I've lied, I've manipulated everyone for sixteen years. I've been playing someone who I've come to regard as a second brother, all in the name of bringing back your father."

"You…you don't mean Damon do you? You're talking about my birth father, about Lucas Scott." Sawyer said as dread and fear began to settle in the pit of her stomach.

"That's right. I am sorry for this…but you're the only way I can get to Damon." Nathan said before saying something in Latin and Sawyer fell unconscious.

Brooke's house

11:15 A.M.

"You guys all ready?" Stefan asked Lydia and Jamie as they walked down the stairs to the first floor with their bags.

"Yeah, I just never thought we'd be running for our lives from my own grandfather." Lydia muttered as Jamie put a hand on her shoulder and Stefan walked over.

"We'll figure this out, it won't be forever. If there's one thing I've learned the last three years is that Damon finds another way, he never gives up even when the odds are stacked against them." Stefan assured her.

"Everything okay?" Damon said as he walked into the room.

"Yeah Uncle Damon, everything's fine." Lydia smiled at him before she and Jamie walked out the door.

"Everything okay with you?" Stefan asked as he turned to face his brother.

"Yeah…no. I've been thinking about Nathan." Damon told him.

"Then you noticed it to." Stefan said.

"His story doesn't add up. Nathan is a powerful Witch, as well as a skilled hand to hand fighter. He would not have been taken out so easily. And then there's the fact he was virtually uninjured, no scratches on him whatsoever. And Dan Scott is the psychopath who murdered his own brother in cold blood; he would be more than capable of keeping his own son prisoner. Something's…off here." Damon said as someone walked inside.

"Everything okay?" Alaric asked as he noticed the serious looks on their faces.

"I'm actually tired of hearing that," Damon joked as he turned at him, "so you come to say goodbye?"

"No, you said to meet here in three hours." Alaric reminded him and Damon stood shocked before grinning.

"So you decided to come huh?" Damon asked.

"There's nothing for me here anymore. I've said my goodbyes and I'm ready for the next chapter of my life." Alaric said just as Damon's phone rang.

"It's Nathan," Damon asked before he answered it, "Hey Nate, where are you?"

"There's been a change of plan." Nathan said in an ominous voice that had all three Vampires frowning.

"Nate?" Damon asked beginning to grow concerned.

"You were so busy looking at Alaric, Enzo, and Sam that you didn't bother looking at anyone else." Nathan said and Damon realized, at last, who the true mole was.

"Where is my daughter?" Damon growled as Stefan and Alaric shared shocked looks.

"Sawyer is fine and she'll continue to remain fine as long as I get Hades' Scythe. Call me when you're ready to trade." Nathan told him before handing up.

"That son of a bitch!" Damon roared as he threw his phone against the wall and it against the wall.

"What is going on here?" Brooke asked as she, Peyton, and Luna rushed back in, alerted by the sound of Damon shout.

"What's going on?" Peyton said, balancing Rose-Marie in her arms.

"It's Nathan." Damon spat.

"What about him?" Brooke asked concerned for her friend.

"No, you don't understand. Luna, Peyton, it is Nathan." Stefan said with a significant look to the blondes and it takes only a moment for them to understand.

"No...It's impossible." Peyton said in denial.

"It's very possible Peyton; I looked so hard at Enzo and Sam that I didn't bother looking at anyone else." Damon said cursing himself.

"Would one of you want to explain something to the woman who doesn't get it?" Brooke asked irrigated and the Vampires and Peyton looked at each other before Damon walked over to Brooke nervously.

"During Thanks Giving, Dan tried to make a deal with me. When it didn't take, he told me that there was a mole in our circle of trust. I wasn't sure whether I believed him, but I needed to consider it. So I started looking at those who were close to me that had a reason to want me to dead." Damon explained.

"And Sam and Enzo were your prime suspects?" Brooke asked angrily.

"And me." Alaric said helpfully.

"I know you're angry that I suspected Sam, but she was in league with Julian when we first saw her again. As much as love Sam, I would be an idiot not to consider it." Damon pointed out and Brooke reluctantly nodded, calming down slightly.

"But it doesn't make sense. I mean, Nathan hates Dan." Peyton pointed out not wanting to believe it.

"His reasons don't matter, what matters is that he has Sawyer." Damon told them and the three women looked at him stunned.

"No, he wouldn't hurt her." Peyton said in denial.

"We don't know that. Until we can understand what's going on with him, we need to consider that everything Nathan has said or done for the last sixteen years has been a lie." Stefan told them.

"Stefan's right. We need to move now." Damon said briskly as he moved passed them.

Old Salvatore mansion

12:12 P.M.

"I don't believe it." Hayley said softly as their entire group followed Damon, who was carrying a shovel.

"It's difficult to accept Tutor mom…but it's true." Brooke said as she placed a hand on her friend's shoulder in a show of support.

"What are we doing out here Damon?" Luna asked as Damon led them around the side of the house.

"Getting the scythe." Damon said bluntly.

"So you're gonna trade it for Sawyer?" Alaric asked wondering if this should be a group discussion.

"No, but we need to get the scythe as far from here as possible," Damon said as she stopped at a spot on the hill, "tell me Stefan, Luna, do you remember Raisa?"

"Our old maid?" Stefan asked and Damon nodded as he began to dig.

"She was only one mom trusted enough to tell the truth about the scythe. The night you and I turned into Vampires, you killed her," Damon said bluntly as he continued to dig and Stefan winced at the reminded, "Raisa always told me that we should take the secret of the scythe to our graves…I decided that in her case, it would be literally."

A clank went off as Damon's shovel hit something. Damon smiled a grim smile as he signaled Stefan and Enzo over. Together, the three Vampires lifted out from the dirt an old coffin. Setting it on the ground, Stefan and Enzo back up as Damon knelt down next to the coffin and pulled it open. Inside the coffin was a skeleton dressed in nineteenth century women's clothing with holding onto a seven foot long scythe. Damon reached down and gently pried the scythe out of Raisa's skeletal hands.

"You've done your job protecting the scythe Raisa; let us take it from here." Damon said softly as he gently shut the coffin and stood up.

The others watched, transfixed, as Damon put his hands at the center of the scythe and twist. There was a snapping sound and the scythe split into two pieces. One was now a stick with the crescent shaped blade while the other was simply a stick with an opening. Damon then turned around to face the others.

"We need to separate the two halves; Dan can't unleash supernatural Armageddon unless both halves of the scythe are joined. Stefan, Luna, take them," Damon ordered as he handed his brother the blade and his sister the stick, "run as far from here as you can and keep running. Never stop running until you know for sure that Dan has been stopped."

"If you kept the scythe for hidden for all these years, why not just leave it here?" Lana asked her brother curiously.

"Because if it comes down to a choice between the world and Sawyer, Sawyer wins every time. If there is no other option but to hand the scythe over to Nathan in order to save her, I will do it in a heartbeat," Damon told them all bluntly and once he was are they understood, he carried on, "Enzo, go with Luna, Sam you go with Stefan."

"I'm not going anywhere without my daughter." Sam snapped only to step back at the glare Damon shot her.

"You'll do what I tell you to Sami. This is bigger than what you or I want, if we fail here today than there won't be a world left for your daughter to grow up in. So you're gonna go with my brother and help him keep his half of the scythe safe, do you understand?" Damon asked dangerously and Sam couldn't help but nod.

"What about the kids?" Peyton asked.

"That's where you and Hayley come in Peyt. You two take lil' Brooke, Rosie, Jamie and Lydia and get out of here. I don't care where you go, don't tell me, but get out of here; get as far from Nathan and Dan as possible." Damon ordered and Peyton looks like she is about to argue but the nods her head in resignation, realizing he is right.

"So this it…after we finally were all together for the first time, we have to split up." Peyton said sadly as she gently stroked Rosie's face and Damon walked over to her, gently putting his hand until her chin and forcing her to meet his eyes.

"I can't protect you anymore, not from Nathan. He knows almost everything about us, knows every move I'll make before I make it. We'll be together again soon okay?" Damon kissed her on the forehead briefly before turning to Alaric and Brooke, "you two are with me. We're gonna go get Sawyer back…but first we're gonna stop by Mystic Falls police department."

"Damon," Haley calls out as the trio move to leave, "when you say you're gonna get Sawyer back…what are you gonna do?"

"Whatever I have to." Damon said vaguely before walking away.

Mystic Falls police department

1:11 P.M.

"How could you let them keep me locked up?" Caroline asks Elena as she, Liz, and Bonnie stare at the Doppelganger unforgivingly.

"I can think one reason: you, enacting a plan that you knew was likely to get Peyton killed." Elena said unrepentant.

"I was trying to stop a mad man from holding Damon's leash." Caroline justifies but Elena had known the blonde long enough to know when she was lying.

"No, you were doing it out of spite. You wanted revenge on Damon for doing what he did to your mom, even though he had no choice in the matter. You wanted to punish him by making him lose a woman he has loved more than he has ever loved anyone," Elena's voice begins to crack and the other three women soften as they realize that Elena, despite having every right not to, had chosen the right side while they had not, "a women who is impossible not to like and believe me, I have tried not to like her. For the crimes of being loved by Damon Salvatore and loving him in return, you sentenced Peyton Sawyer to death Caroline. Their daughter was born this week, who you also sentenced to death simply for being Damon's child. Justify what you did however you did however you want Care, but the fact is you were on the brink of letting our side split into two groups and you really didn't seem to care. You left me no choice but to side with Damon."

Before anyone could remotely absorb what Elena had just said, the doors to the building burst open. The four women turned to see Damon storm inside, Alaric and Brooke flanking him on either side. Any sarcastic retorts on the lips of Caroline and Bonnie died the moment they say his furious, dangerous expression. It was clear something big was going down and only Elena was brave enough to step into his path.

"Damon, what's wrong?" Elena asked trying to keep the quiver out of her voice.

"Nathan is the mole Elena." Damon said lowly.

This sounded like gibberish to the other three, but it seemed to mean something to Elena. She gapped at him for a moment looking like a goldfish as the other stared on curiously, her friends wondering what was going on.

"Wh-what?" Elena asked stunned.

"Do I need to repeat myself? Nathan is a backstabbing bastard, Dan is still on the loose, and Nathan has kidnapped someone I care about for leverage. Liz," Damon suddenly turned towards the older woman, "do still have any of the Witches that were working for Dan that we rounded up the other day here?"

"Yes, there's still one in the cell. There's a transfer unit on its way, it'll be here within the hour." Liz answered her former fiend cautiously.

"Well I guess I'm pressed for time aren't I?" Damon said dryly as he tried to walk into the back but Elena blocked him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Elena demanded.

"What does it look like; I'm going to go get information." Damon said and no one had any doubt about what he meant by that.

"Damon, don't do this. This isn't who you are." Elena pleaded but Damon only scoffed.

"You're wrong Elena; this is who I have always been. I'm the guy who makes the hard choices that the rest of you are too afraid to make. I let you hold my leash for a while and when I did, the people I cared about either got hurt or died. Not anymore. Get out of my way before I make you." Damon ordered in a low, dangerous voice.

"No, you won't hurt me." Elena said confidently.

"Your little whipping boy wouldn't have…but that man died when you tried to compel your memories of loving him away." Damon said coldly before moving.

It was a good thing that the other officers were all busy with the influx of prisoner transfers that had been brought on by seemingly taking down Dan. It would have been hard to explain how Damon had just moved so fast and snapped Elena's neck without trying. As Elena's unconscious form crumpled to the ground, Bonnie moved towards Damon, her eyes blazing with anger but she never got the chance. An invisible force seems to shove her against the wall and Bonnie struggles, even casts a few spells but cannot get free. Brooke walks forward, her dark eyes boring into the younger Witch.

"You're out of your league little girl. I know everything your Grams knew at her peak. Just stay out of this and let the grownups talk now." Brooke said in a mocking, condescending voice.

Damon smirks at Brooke before turning his attention to Caroline. The baby Vamp backs up, fear in her eyes.

"You gonna come at me Blondie? I hope so; I've itching for some pay back ever since you failed to get Peyton killed." Damon said darkly enjoying her frantically shaking her head no.

"Damon…what's happened to you?" Liz asked hardly recognizing the man who was once her friend.

"What's happened is that I've finally stopped caring about and playing the games you people in this town insist on playing. I'm playing by no one's rules but my own and, for the first time in years, I feel like myself. Now, I'm gonna go interrogate the prisoner and if anyone wants to stop me, I encourage you to try." Damon said smirking as he walked into the back.

All the ells were empty except one. The occupant lifted his head and Damon was surprised by how young he was. He was around how old Stefan was when he was turned with short black hair and green eyes. He seemed afraid and, if this were any other circumstances, Damon would have felt bad for him. But Damon could afford to feel bad for him, not right now.

"You're him, Damon Salvatore." The young man said as he looked up at him.

"Sure am. What's your name kid?" Damon asked nonchalantly as he leaned against the bars.

"Liam." The boy said hesitantly.

"Well Liam, your boss has had someone I thought was my friend kidnap my daughter. Know where I can find them?" Damon inquired.

"No." Liam said immediately.

"You're a bad liar kid." Damon told him as he stepped back from the bars.

Damon grabs the cell door and gives it a powerful yank, causing the door to open as the lock brakes. The cell opens with a whine and Damon steps in, smirking as Liam backs away from the door. Damon walks over and slams Liam against the sink on the wall, head first. Liam groans as Damon turns on the faucet, water pouring over his head. Damon reaches up above him where the lone light shines from a small chandelier like thing and Damon yanks it out of the wall, the wires coming down. Damon places the still operating light to the water and those outside can hear Liam's agonized scream.

 **So what do you guys think? Please leave any thoughts or comments in a review, feedback is greatly appreciated.**


End file.
